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 Eyes of Silver

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Luvidicus
Tasty morsel



Posts : 1
Join date : 2016-02-22

Eyes of Silver Empty
PostSubject: Eyes of Silver   Eyes of Silver Icon_minitimeMon Feb 22, 2016 6:20 pm

Eyes of Silver

By: Luvidicus

Chapter 1


Felarya.  To the uninitiated, this rather alien land would be considered a wondrous, magical place filled with swathes of lush, verdant jungle and shimmering azure seas.  Tales abound of powerful artefacts and mounds of treasure locked deep within old ruins, just waiting for a bold adventurer to walk in and take it.

In all actuality, Felarya is an unstable patchwork of various climes woven together in mysterious and incomprehensible ways.  From a slab of cold, hard tundra that seems to have been ripped out of the arctic and tossed into the jungle to a vast, rolling desert where man and beast alike can literally be lost to the sands of time, Felarya has it all and everything inbetween.

 Many would be adventurers have met their end whilst being distracted by the breath taking beauty of this world and those who inhabit it.  Dangers abound around every corner, whether it be a giant naga looking to gulp someone down or a slavering Kensha beast ready to pounce.  Even many of the plants are dangerous, some of which even prey upon the top sentient predators of the land.

Even veteran explorers go missing with startling regularity, more than likely devoured by one of the world’s many voracious residents.  However even in the depths of the untamed jungles that blanket the land, it is possible for even the meekest of beings to survive if they’re clever enough.

***********************

Sunlight filtered down through the trees of the Felaryan jungle, leaving sun dappled pools of light to illuminate the dark forest below.  The land beneath the tree tops was filled with a variety of colorful yet utterly strange plants and animals, weaving a veritable living tapestry that reflected the beautiful, yet ultimately chaotic nature of Felarya itself.

The trilling of birdsong drifted down from the canopy, filling the forest with sweet natural music as the smell of flowers pervaded the air.  Down below a silver stream cut a swathe through the jungle, its clear refreshing waters providing relief to all who drank from it.

The weed choked bank would be difficult for even normal sized creatures to navigate through, but a few spots were clear enough to get to without much hassle.

 While even the smallest stream would prove a challenge for a creature the size of a mouse to cross, a fallen tree that spanned the width of the running water made a convenient bridge for even the smallest of beings.

Leth scrambled up onto the natural bridge, surveying the area.  The tiny neera had used this particular tree to cross the stream many times in the past, but it always paid to be vigilant when everything in this beautiful world was out to get you.  Like many of her fellow Felaryans, Leth had for the most part forgone any form of clothing, with only a loin cloth about her waist to preserve some sense of modesty.  

A pair of large, mouse-like ears sat atop Leth’s skull and remained partially obscured by her long, jet black hair.  They pivoted to and fro like the world’s smallest radar dishes, detecting even the tiniest of sounds.  As she listened her lithely built body tensed up like a coiled spring, ready to dart away at the first signs of trouble.  After a good minute she finally relaxed and gave a sigh of relief.

With no danger in sight the neera inched forwards onto the bridge, taking one last glance around before scampering across as quickly as she could.  Being out in the open was dangerous, and the only way to minimize the risks of being snatched up was to get out of sight as quickly as possible.

Leth easily crossed without any mishaps and breathed a small sigh of relief before assuming her tense posture once more, remaining still for over a minute as she scanned the area once more just to be safe.  Once she knew the coast was clear the neera faded into the undergrowth and began to make her way south, following the course of the stream.

She could already smell the sweet tang of fruit in the air, causing her tiny mouth to water as she made her way towards a rather small tree.  The flowering plant had long since lost its blooms, and fleshy pods packed with sweet juices hung from its low hanging branches.

 Leth’s stomach growled loudly, causing her to freeze in place for a full second before relaxing once more and shaking her head.  She chuckled softly to herself and stared longingly at the large, bulbous fruit that hung from the tree.

Leth had often fantasized about the hero’s welcome she’d receive if she managed to drag one of the massive fruits home, but she knew that it was a vain hope.  Even if she managed to cut such a prize loose, there would be no way for her to safely bring it back to the rest of her tribe.

  With a disappointed sigh the neera pulled herself out of her fantasy and instead made her way towards a more easily accessible bush which was brimming with ripe berries.

It was then that Leth heard something that made her freeze in her tracks and look about with a haunted look on plastered upon her face.  The sound of soft sobbing drifted towards her from amidst the tangled roots of the fruit tree, setting her on edge.  She took a step towards the tree, her heart racing.  

She had heard old tales of cunning predators who would steal the voice of a child and use it to lure unwitting neeras away to their doom.  However, a youngling had gone missing in her tribe just a few days prior, and the chance of recovering one of her own outweighed the risks of walking into a potential trap.

Leth slowly crept closer to the tree, listening intently as the sobbing persisted.  After several minutes she finally reached a rather large opening in the roots and peeked around inside.  The neera’s heart skipped a beat.

There was certainly the silhouette of a child in the darkness with their knees drawn up to their chest, but whoever it was certainly wasn’t one of her kin.  After all, Leth figured that she’d have remembered a youngling who was ten times her size!

She slowly backed away, trying to get out of the situation as quietly as possible.  She was so intent on keeping an eye on the crying giant that she didn’t feel the weak, dry twig underneath her feet until it was too late.

“SNAP”

The crying immediately stopped as the child’s head whipped upwards and began to swivel about, erratically starting to scan the surrounding area with wide, terror stricken eyes that shone in the gloom.

Leth froze in place, allowing her ears to go flat against her head in an attempt to minimize her profile.  Her heart pounded in her tiny chest as her blood turned to ice water in her veins.  The neera took swift, shallow breaths as she prayed to the Mother Goddess that the giant wouldn’t find her.

Suddenly the child’s eyes centered on her and held there for what seemed to be an eternity.  Blood started to pound in Leth’s ears as she slowly began to back away, starting to slink out of view.  Then something bizarre happened, upon seeing Leth move the giant flinched and recoiled backwards, starting to scramble away from her.  

“N-no!” A plaintive voice echoed in the gloom, tugging at Leth’s heart strings.

The neera had already taken a step back into the hollow before she came to her senses.  She felt rather conflicted, part of her wanted to run back and warn the rest of her tribe about the potential danger that this giant posed, but her heart went out to the crying child who seemed frightened and alone.

 She weighed her decision carefully.  The safety of her entire tribe was at stake, that she was certain of.  However, could she really bring herself to abandon a child to their fate?  The neera chewed her lip and sighed, shaking her head.

“Damn it all.”

*************************

Leth tore her gaze away from the twisted mass of roots and bolted away, sprinting for the cover of the undergrowth.  She threw a glance over her shoulder and was relieved to see that she had not been pursued as her feet dug into the cool earth beneath her feet.

 After fading into the foliage the neera quickly made her way to the tree bridge with all the haste that she could muster. With time being of the essence caution was thrown to the wind as Leth dashed across the natural bridge, making it to the other side in record time.

The neera spent the next several minutes dashing beneath the undergrowth, darting from one thick clump of ferns to another until she finally reached what she had been looking for.  The stone foundation of what used to be a rather large cottage loomed over her, filling her with relief.  She quickly clambered up the crumbling stone structure and ran into the center of the ruined building.

Leth quickly looked around before scampering towards a hole that had been dug out of the debris and made her way down into the cool darkness.  The tunnel sloped downwards in a dizzying spiral that dug its way deeper and deeper into the earth, illuminated by tiny torches the size of match sticks.

Suddenly the cramped earthy tunnel opened up and gave way to a massive cavern which was illuminated by an eerie green glow.  This was emitted from a massive formation of crystal that grew up from the center of the cavern, casting its light into every corner of the place.  Grouped around the crystal were several huts made from bits of rubble that had been brought down from the surface.

Leth quickly made her way into the center of the village, running past other members of her tribe who were weaving baskets and making pottery as their breakfasts cooked.  Most of the other neeras were out gathering berries and edible dead fall, or out hunting small rodents and insects.  Only a select few hunters had chosen to stay in order to defend their home if it fell under attack.

A few of these neeras waved at Leth, whilst others frowned upon the fact that she had returned home empty handed.  However she paid them no mind and moved toward the largest hut in the village.  

Leth pushed through the hanging mats that covered the doorway and lowered her head submissively.  A young looking woman with dark brown hair woven into an intricate braid looked up from the small crystal shard that she had been so intently focused on.  Her hard eyes stared into Leth’s own as the young neera took a seat on the floor in front of her.

“Elder Snydal, I need to speak with you.”

**********************

It only took twenty minutes for the few able bodied hunters that remained in the village to assemble around the Elder’s hut, brandishing their tiny hand axes and blowpipes.  Leth stood beside Syndal, looking over her fellow tribesman as the Elder cleared her voice to speak.

“As you all know, the safety of our entire tribe is at stake.” The Elder began, addressing each of the young men in front of her.

 The group of eight hunters shifted uncomfortably back and forth, nervous about the daring quest that they were about to undertake.  While they were all fairly experienced marksmen, none of them had ever faced such a task.

“A young giant has been spotted near the fruit grove across the stream.  If they are allowed to remain there, it will jeopardize our ability to feed the tribe.  This threat must be removed.”  The Elder said, crossing her arms behind her back and sighing.

“I know that this will be dangerous, but the blessings of the Mother Goddess are with you.   May she speed you on your way home” She said, giving each of the hunters a curt nod and placing her hands upon their shoulders.

After receiving several blessings from both the Elder and the tribal Shaman each hunter lined up by the tunnel that lead to the surface and looked over their weapons for a final time.  Leth was among them with a simple stone knife strapped onto her hip and a blowpipe clutched in her tiny hands.  

Leth never really had much use for such a weapon as she was no hunter.  But now, this gift from her late father could very well mean the difference between life and death.  Leth cringed slightly in the darkness as she followed the hunters, regretting the fact that she had never actually practiced much with it.

Soon however, she and the other neeras felt the warm light of the sun kiss against their faces as they emerged out into the open.  Each of them uttered a silent prayer before filing behind Leth, causing the young neera to gulp loudly.  While she knew that she would be guiding the hunters to their target, Leth had no idea that she was going to be on point.

After a moment however, Leth simply shook her head and began to proceed down the route she had taken so many times before, hoping beyond hope that this day would not be her last.

***************************

The hunting party moved through the undergrowth cautiously, slowly starting to move into position around the tree.  Leth took a deep breath and stepped out into the open.  She scanned the area for a final time to make sure the coast was clear before walking towards the tree with her heart hammering in her chest.

The plan that the hunters had come up with was simple, but risky.  The rest of the party would lie in wait around the tangled mess of roots while Leth would try and draw the giant out.  After the creature exposed itself, the hunters would then take shots and hopefully bring it down before any harm came to her.

Leth however didn’t put much faith into her tribemates and was ready to run at a moment’s notice as she crept closer.  In her experience, plans rarely survived contact with a real world situation.  Even if the other neeras around her had absolutely perfect aim, something else would go wrong and potentially get every single one of them killed.

As such, Leth was prepared to take the first shot if she needed to, clutching her blow pipe in her tiny hands as she walked.  She took a deep breath and uttered a silent prayer before climbing into the roots of the tree, dropping down into the hollow where she had first spotted the giant.

The air in the hollow was damp and cool, carrying an earthy scent that might have made Leth feel safe if she hadn’t known that there was a potentially dangerous predator lurking in the back of the crevice.  She slowly crept forward, slotting a poisoned dart into the end of her pipe before clearing her throat.

“Hello? Is anyone there?” The neera called into the darkness, cringing slightly.  It went against her instincts to make so much noise, but she knew that it would be the only way to draw the giant out.  Even so, she hadn’t meant to be so loud and waited nervously for any sort of reply.

There was the sound of mad scrambling as something very big started to move away from her, causing Leth to frown again.  What kind of Felaryan predator actually ran away from potential prey?  It didn’t really add up to the confused neera who stepped forward and called out again.

“G-go away!” Came the reply from the darkness, causing the neera to freeze in her tracks for a moment.  There was a definite panicked edge to the child’s voice, as though they were truly scared of her.  Leth bit her lip and tightened her grip around the pipe.

“I’m here, stop playing around and come get me!” Leth growled, deciding that the giant was probably playing games with her as she raised her pipe in preparation to shoot the predator.  

“I said leave me alone!” There was a sudden rush of air, and a massive rock flew right at Leth’s head, forcing her to hit the dirt.  The neera could hear blood pounding in her ears as her pulse skyrocketed, sending adrenaline coursing through her tiny veins.  She almost wanted to laugh, a sudden sense of euphoria filling her entire being before quickly being quenched by cold fear as a giant hand appeared from the shadows.

The neera screamed and quickly scrambled to her feet before darting out of the hollow as fast as her little legs could carry her.  Even then she could feel the small clods of dirt hitting her in the back of the head as the giant came out close behind her.  In her haste however, Leth found her foot suddenly caught on an exposed root and fell hard, crying out in pain as she reached down to clutch at her ankle.

A shadow loomed over her, causing the neera to screw her eyes shut and reflexively throw her hands over her head as she rocked back and forth in a fetal position as she waited for the inevitable.  However, instead of being scooped up off of the ground or crushed, Leth instead felt a gust of wind rush over her, followed by harsh yelling.

When she looked up, Leth caught a glance of the giant covering up his face with a single arm, using the entire appendage to try and shield its head.  Tiny poisoned darts skipped off of the baggy red fabric that clung to the boy’s arm, the projectiles carrying neither the speed nor mass to punch through his clothing.  A few of the tiny darts hung limply on the cloth like briars, their poisoned heads getting caught in the colorful weave before dropping one by one as the assault continued.

After a few more fruitless volleys, the rest of the hunters broke contact and ran for the undergrowth, abandoning Leth to her fate.  The neera gulped loudly, glancing at all the tiny, scattered needles that littered the ground, having failed to so much as scratch the giant.  If none of the tiny darts had found their mark, what hope did she have of surviving?  Leth stared up at the giant and gulped loudly as he towered over her.

This is the end, isn’t it? May the Goddess have mercy on my soul…Leth thought before screwing her eyes closed, not wanting to see her fate coming.  A moment later she felt a set of massive fingers wrap around her body, gently starting to lift her up.  The tiny neera’s heart raced as she felt the warmth of the giant’s palm against her bare skin, feeling the mass of flesh and bone enveloping her throb in tune with the giant’s own heartbeat.

Moist, hot air blew over her; causing Leth to bite her bottom lip as she fought with herself to keep her eyes jammed shut.  She could hear the blood pounding in her ears as her blood ran cold once more, now utterly convinced that she was about to meet her end.

********************************

“Wh-what are you?”

Leth’s eyes snapped open, and she found herself staring into a massive pair of soft, silver orbs that shimmered with moisture.  The neera found the young giant’s eyes to be quite striking, and even a bit startling, indeed if she hadn’t been in a life or death situation she probably would have commented on them.

“What did you say?” Leth asked, hardly daring to believe that the giant had for stayed eating her for the moment.  She knew from old myths and legends that predators had a tendency to tease their prey and dangle false hope right in their reach before cruelly snatching it away and swallowing it down.  But gazing into the child’s eyes made her feel calm, as though she were just gazing into the eye of an innocent youngling.

The giant took another deep breath, and Leth could feel the boy’s hands trembling around her.

“I asked: what are you?”
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