“Blegh, I think I’m going to be air sick. It’s times like this I wish I still had the mask of teleportation.” Grumbled Forty Four, crossing his arms.
Deep in contemplation, it was not long for words of his escape reach the Beast king. Any sort of reactionary response against the interlopers was quickly shot down by the large entity, while he had not been expecting such a bold partaking from his visitors, it was a welcome crisis none the less. After all, servants of Ekimu had marched onto his land, rejected and rebuked his hospitality, and freed a particularly volatile prisoner of theirs. They’ve set out on a fools errand, searching for an unclaimable mask. Not to mention the fact that Ekimu’s servants were now in cahoots with the sworn enemy of his apprentice. And to top it all off? It was now the hands of Morrus, not his, that would be red with the consequences of forty four’s future actions. He loosened up a bit as he reclined back into his chair, and resumed his long wait, assured that his patience would be rewarded.
“Oh, I think I’ve got something that can help with that! We’ve just gotta beat em to the mask!” Twenty three Cheerfully stated after it looked like she was struggling to remember something.
Due to being an individual of plant nature, Morrus didn’t have to worry about the confines of physical limitation. He rotated his head 180 degrees around to glare directly at Risa and then slowly returned to his original, irritated position.
“Right, well, if you aren’t afraid of heights, I could use some directions.” Morrus glanced around, hoping wherever they were going was not in the region of fire. “Where are we headed?”
“You don’t know where the labyrinth is? Figures you’re not as well traveled as me,” huffed the Wolfen,"There’s a couple of small islands off the coast of the jungle region, the maze is located on the largest one.
“Ohh, I 've heard of that. Could never convince anyone to sail me out there, though. This trip is getting better by the minute!” Risa smiles in childlike glee, starting to fidget with excitement.
“Me? Oh, there’s not much to say.” She leans back, enjoying the breeze. “I’m just your average old mercenary, one in a hundred. Though, between you and me, I’m in it for the thrills more than the money.” She winks.
“Hmm, interesting,” he replied sounding disinterested.
“So mister Ekimu sir, I’m pretty sure that if I can touch his mask, I can temporarily drain it of its power!” Twenty Three suggested, wagging her tail.
“I went over this with Risa earlier, so I’ll summarize.” He glanced down at the caged creature which weighed more than he wanted it to. “I was an Okotan who got appointed to the office of living tree person, I neglected my entire civilization, they deposed me and I took the world’s worst beauty rest only to wake up and find all the rules rewritten. Man-wolves, missing Mask Makers, Beast Kings, and probably a hundred other things I’m completely oblivious to.”
“I told your ‘father’ to get off my property and stop breaking the rules.” He glanced back up at the horizon. “If necessary, I can evict him later.”
“Oh please, that thing isn’t my father. The closest thing I have to one is some beast that’s probably starving half dead in a ditch as it rots. That or whatever it is that animals do.”
Azure continues to follow the group, she was rathered by the unusual quietness.
Suddenly the trajectories aligned and the two beings crashed into each other. Reige was pretty much untouched by the crash but Virky flew to the ground a few centimeters away.
“OUCH!” She let out as she hit her back into the ground, “Watch where you going, you moron!” She screams in anger. Reige just stares at her glowing orange. “Pfft…” Reige scoffs as he readies his swords.
Virky gets up and see Reige approaching with his sword, “Okay maybe I overreacted” Virky jokes as the deadly silent Reige approaches her and like in an instant he stops, his blade retracted, “Leave me alone, Coward” He says as he turns away.
In annoyances Virky replies “I’m no coward!”, Reige turns his face back towards her, “Prove it” he demands, Virky hesitantly got up and took on a fighting stance as she approached the hovering beging. She then stops in the middle of her tracks. She looks directly into Reiges eye, “The most courageous thing you can do is face your fear head on and overcome it. so that’s what I’m going to do!” She says triumphantly. “That’s why I’m coming with you, a friend would come in handy in these parts” She says as she approaches Reige, who looks at the Okotan in total disbelief here he had expected the young Okotan to drop everything and scurry away instead she had gone straight towards him and now trying to invite herself in to tag along. “No… I work alone” Reige lets out as he begins treading away from the Okotan he doesn’t get far until she is right next to him again, “Your not gonna give up are you?” Reige asks a hint of annoyance escaped his cold and monotone voice.
“Nope, you wanted me to prove that I wasn’t a coward so until I’ve done that you are stuck with me, Glowy!” SHe replies cheerfully, “Btw my names Virky, what’s yours?” She asks, “Reige…” He reluctantly replies
Salty air made its way up towards the group, and if any of them bothered to look down they would see the green trees disappear only to be replaced with choppy blue waves tipped with white foam.
“Well it’s not like I have much memory of being one. Are you gonna tell me that you remember what it was you did in your formative years?”
He grew silent, looking at the ground turn into the rough waves of the ocean, a sight he had witnessed time and time again, but one that he had never stopped to notice. The Crash of the waves against the rocks, the sea winds blowing against his rough fur, and the turbulent swirling waters complementing the stormy grey sky.
Ilza nods meekly, just sticking close as they continue to make their way through the market. She looks this way and that, trying to see if she could spot any sign of that wretched Stone Okotan. She had since finished her little meal and cleaned off her mask and palms of any excess until they were spotless again.
“Jungle healer.” Hoari whispered to himself, he was certain that he knew someone who shared that same position but doubted they were one and the same.
The adventurer Stopped in his tracks, he had heard something or someone that sounded almost exactly like the deserter “You’re not that much different.” A voice in his head told him “You were prepared to leave Ilza behind just like Jasper did. And for what? Food? You haven’t changed. you’re still the same selfish child running away from his responsibilities " the voice continued You’re always so prepared to abandon those close to you.”
“I heard something.” He said signaling for Ilza to be silent
Pheore stared into the darkness. It was hard to tell how much time had passed, without the sun. She was hungry, sore, tired, but none of those helped her gauge the time. Perhaps the hive could tell her, but the parts outside this room felt distant, and she liked it better that way.
She stood. Something was coming. A concentration of the hive moving towards them, and at their center - her.
The spiders around her began to move, minds crawling with a new task. They bunched up at the closed-off passageway, the air filling with their scrabbling as they worked at the stone. They were joined by their fellows outside, pulling fallen earth and stone away and securing it with webbing. The opening started small, but grew, the spiders working faster as they did. The passageway cleared once more, the weight of stone and earth undone by the efforts of millions acting as one.
The spiders settled back into place, bowing as their queen approached. Rach stood front and center, and Pheore gritted her teeth, throwing Hitora over her shoulder before joining him.
Skyll stepped onto the threshold, silhouetted dimly by the outside light.
“Why is he not one of us,” she snapped, jabbing Hitora with her spear. Rach chitters his agreement.
“You didn’t induct the other one, I thought you wouldn’t want him either.” Pheore holds her head high, matching Skyll’s glare. The queen heaves a dramatic sigh.
“That is my decision to make. Feel lucky you made the right choice.” She shifts her spearpoint to Pheore’s throat, then pulls it back to her side. “Rach, take him to join the other one, then join me with the other hive. I do believe it’s time to show our neighbors who they’re dealing with.” She smirks, and Rach reaches out to snag Hitora with a claw. Pheore hesitates for a moment, then relinquishes him, watching as Rach skitters out the door.
Pheore moves to follow, only to be stopped by Skyll’s spear once more. “Are you feeling sorry for yourself?” the queen drawls. “Trying to soften the blow to your friends? Remember, you chose this. This is who you are, and you have only yourself to blame. You know that, and they will know that too. Just remember that, the next time you try and play games.” Skyll turns, and Pheore follows her into the night.
Their progress goes unimpeded, though the eerie quiet continues. It’s around noon that the city appears through the trees, and Vohman doesn’t slow down.
Hoari turned in circles trying to locate their missing Comrade then stopped pointing forward in the direction of the voice “Gotcha!” Hoari motioned for Ilza to follow him for one last time.