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walkingbyself
Great warrior
Posts : 453
Join date : 2011-02-15
Age : 35
Location : United States
 |  Subject: Pet Store Horror's  Fri Aug 05, 2011 10:12 pm | |
| Pet Store Horrors - Spoiler:
The Lower Market of Negav stands as a sort of shady reflection of the bustling Grand Market District above. It is set in a long wide tunnel, the edges crammed with stalls selling whatever wares are possible and lit by many blue and purple magic lights. The walls are pierced by countless shops and back caves selling varied, and often illegal, goods.
Some of those illegal shops and stores also include a poorly hidden and somewhat infamous pet shop call "Danny's Pet's and Supplies" a store built into a hole in the wall and run by a elderly man named Danny. A human well into his years even by judging by the looks on his face. With a round gut and arms that were wide enough he could break a man in half if he tried. His face and arms covered in scars and stitches. With many of those stitches looking as if they had been there long past their time of removal. With a beard on him that gave him the look of an child's holiday character if it weren't for the scars and the look in his eyes that would stop a man in their tracks if they looked into them. Danny stood in his shop behind his counter holding up one of his many specimens giving it a look over making sure it wasn't injured or sick as neither would do if he were to convince a customer to buy it.
"Well it looks like ya seem fine enough to me. I just might be able to sell ya to some one for a little bit o silver just yet" Danny said in a deep gruff voice as he stood up and walked to an empty cage and put the creature inside of it right as the door jingled to a bell as some one entered the store
"Eh? Ah a customer! Oh, it's only you Ferris wha can I do ya for this time?" Danny said turning around and to see a lean looking elf in middle class clothes and looking very out of place in the store his black hair slicked back into a pony tail and sharp green eyes that looked to pierce through a wall. Stood standing in the door way as the door closed behind him
"I have come to collect my shipment I received the message you sent telling me you had it last night." Ferris said walking into the store his lip curling up in a sneer at the amount of filth in the store as well as the smell
"Ah, I was wonderin when you'd come get that!" Danny said walking to the back of the store "Well come on! Is back ere it is." Danny said waving Ferris over with one hand while holding a door open to a darkened room.
"You have got to be joking... you expect me to enter that dark and dingy place?" Ferris scoffed looking at Danny like he was mad
"Well ya kinda have ta. I'm already under enough pressure as is wha with how ever one ates these things an there giant cousins. So if ya wan it ya have to come back here and collect it Ferris, besides gettin a little dirty is nothin compared what it took to get it and the mother..." Danny said opening the door leading the way inside as Ferris followed after him making sure none of his clothes or any part of his body touched anything in the store that wasn't under his feet
"So you got both of them then? How fortuitous for the both of us then that you were able to acquire two specimens." Ferris commented as the door closed behind them and a light came on leading down a short hall way to another room in the back
"Remeber Ferris tha the mothers are very protective of there young so be careful of her" Danny warned as they stopped outside the other door
"Very well I only need the adult alive long enough to harvest some of her organs which are useful for me only when fresh after that she is of no use to me." Ferris said with a sense of brutal finality "Now open the door." Ferris said squinting his eyes as if he were staring down a foe
"As you wish..." Danny said hesitatingly and opened the door slowly as a loud hiss came out from within the room
"Keep away from me and my child you fiends!" hissed a female's voice within the poorly lighted room
"Seriously madame you are in no position to threaten anyone" Ferris said walking into the room his hand removing a liquid covered dagger from his belt
"You will not take my child from me! I will die first!" hissed a female that was revealed to be a female naga who had her tail that was covered in green scales and several patch's of white down it every few feet or so her hair a tree bark brown with blue eye's filled with fear and determination while her human body was covered in bruises and several cuts.
"Madame if you do not give me your egg willingly then I will take it from you by force. Trust me I have no qualms ending your blight upon this world here and now madame." Ferris said approaching the naga his dagger visible to the her
"Now give it to me." Ferris demanded staring down the female naga who only hissed at him bearing her four fangs at him and giving him a look that would kill if possible
"Stupid beast give me the egg!" Ferris shouted stepping forward readying his dagger should she try anything
"Never you foul demented thing you! How can you just separate a mother from her unborn child!" the female naga shouted covering her egg with her body readying her tail to protect both her egg and herself but first and foremost her egg.
"This is your last chance! Give me the egg or I will kill you now!" Ferris ordered tightening his grip on the dagger hilt his knuckles white
"Not if I kill you first!" the female naga shouted shooting her tail at Ferris like a rapier. Ferris saw this coming and leapt to the side letting the tail shoot by him as he brought the dagger down onto her tail and with a strength unheard of for an elf pulled hard with his dagger pulling the naga towards him and away from her egg.
"Bastard!" the naga shouted as Ferris with drew his knife covered in her red blood while she tried to bring herself around her egg. However as much as she tried she was unable to move her tail for some reason. "What the hell have you done to me!" she shouted staring at her tail and then at the slowly approaching elf.
"A simple poison to immobilize you completely it is rather fast acting and will soon reach your human half soon beast." Ferris said stopping a safe distance from her "At which point I will proceed to kill you and take your egg and every valuable organ within your body. For if there is anything useful to be gained from you freaks it is your few organs within you, that when harvested fresh they some of the best potion ingredient's ever conceived. Now be a good little freak and let the poison take its hold of you and I may yet let you live." Ferris said watching her reaction
"If only to see how long you live with out them" Ferris said with a smile so cruel even a professional interrogator of the Isolon Fist would have a shiver sent down his spine.
"You are not an elf... your a monster within an elf's body!" she spat lurching forward one more time with her whole upper body fist drawn back to punch Ferris directly in the face.
"Tsk. Typical animal behavior this will not be long." Ferris said and with that dodged each and every one of her swings with a speed and grace belonging only to that of an elf. While Ferris seemed to dance around each of her punches the female naga seemed too slow down as their fight slowly progressed and the poison began to affect her upper body yet none of her resolve to keep the elf away from her unborn child. And for her that was all she needed to keep going to keep pressing herself forward to keep trying despite the massively stacked odds against her.
"Your movements are slowing beast it will not be much longer until the poison has taken a full effect of your body." Ferris said with a sort of morbid fascination standing back from the naga as her breathing came out more haggard and labored then before
"I... still have enough... left will within me to... keep you away from my child monster..." the naga gasped for breath the poison's effect clearly visible upon her as she tried to breath and keep standing
"We shall see about that beast" Ferris said coldly and lunged at her with his knife intending to cut her neck open with it. But luckily for her she managed to avoid being killed as she leaned backwards and away from the dagger yet it still managed to kick her throat barely. But in that one moment of being at extremely close range she took her chance. Opening her mouth as wide as she could she lurched forward and bite down hard into the side of his neck.
"Fucking bitch!" Ferris yelled unable to get free from the naga's bite. Using her arms she held his to his side while letting the venom she did have to poison Ferris. While Ferris struggled to break free of her hold he could begin to feel parts of his body begin to go numb and soon unresponsive her poison being just as lethal as the one he had used on her.
"Tha will be enough from you. Cant go avin my critters killin my customers is bad for business." Danny said walking into the room wrapping his fingers around her neck choking her while using the other to pull her off of Ferris. Though she was determined to put every last single drop of her poison inside of the elf the larger human who had her in his grasp was slowly causing her to black out as he held her tightly in his hand while prying her arms off Ferris.
Feeling the naga slowly slipping into unconsciousness Ferris took the chance offered by this to stab his dagger into its side causing her to let go of him and stop her biting his neck. Then kicking her pushed her off of him as Danny removed the female naga from Ferris.
"Filthy beast!" Ferris shouted touching the bite mark on his neck as he feel to a knee a scowl set upon his face the poison taking affect very handily. Yet Ferris was not one to be taken down so easily and had taken an anti venom with him in just such a case and used it now.
"Don't let her pass out now Danny I want her conscious for this." Ferris said with a sneer reaching to his belt again to pull out another blade. Ferris extracted a scalpel looking knife that looked as if it could pierce just about anythings skin.
"Hold her still I know the poison hasn't taken full effect yet not if she had but up that much of a fight to now." Ferris ordered approaching the naga much like a coroner would a body for an autopsy
The naga struggled to break free yet she could feel her strength slowly ebbing away as the poison ran its course and weakened her more and more. She looked for anything that would help her escape the situation she was in and found nothing but the elf the human and her unborn child still in its egg. As Ferris drew closer to her she tried to get further away from him yet her body was unresponsive and the human held her tighter. A tear escaped her eye's as she glanced at her egg and then felt the initial stabbing pain into her chest as she screamed out in pain as Ferris went about his task.
"Ferris do you really think it was necessary to do that while she was still aware? Don get me wrong I know I've done things that could compare to... that." Danny said with a pause. "Yet it jus doesn sit right with me it does." Danny said a hint of remorse escaping his throat escorting Ferris out of the back room, while Ferris carried several jars and the naga's egg his clothes stained with blood from the naga and a bandage on his neck
"You know as well as I do Danny that compared to what her kind does to ours in the jungle that was nothing. Besides you helped in ensuring my task was completed so we both share in this however do not let the idea of what we have done to one concern you. Not when the rewards for what get from having turned what we have gained this night into a profit large enough to ensure the both of us live rather well for the rest of our lives." Ferris dismissing the larger mans discomfort as that of another weak willed human
"Now I will return tomorrow to collect the rest and if it still lives by then I will be sure to end its stain upon Negav." Ferris said departing the pet store with the egg and jar's while Danny was left in the pet store starring at the slowly retreating form of the elf.
Returning to the inside of his store Danny made sure to put the closed sign up as he didn't feel particularly well after witnessing what he just had. Cleaning up the front of the store Danny paused as he looked back at the door that lead to the small hall way and the room in the back. And as he tried to forget about what happened in there he could not get the image of the naga brutally mutilated her abdomen rent open and poorly stitched together with her blood in a puddle on the floor. And for the most brutal part of it all she had been awake through it all and was now laying within the pool of her own blood clutching her abdomen. Crying loudly not for the pain of her body and the pain and humiliation put upon her by Ferris. Instead she cried for her child which she knew she would never live to see her tear streaked face was all that needed to be seen to understand the pain she felt at losing her child.
As the next day came Ferris returned to the same pet store and nodded to Danny who merely walked to the door and opened it for him his insides wouldn't let him be there to be a part of what Ferris was about to do next to the naga. If he was... then Danny was sure he would end up dead as well for trying to betray a friend to protect one of those... things. Sure he and Ferris didn't always see eye to eye but they had both shared in their fair share of adventures in the jungle and survived them with barely as much as the skin on their neck at points. Yet with each successful return Ferris always seemed far more distant. Yet Danny couldn't bring himself to do that which his insides were screaming at him to do.
Yet when Ferris returned from his task in the back Danny barely gave him a second look and buried himself in to his work of carrying for the rest of the creatures he had to sell.
"And I will be back to give you your share of the proceeds Danny once I have successfully completed the potion that requires these ingredients." Ferris said with a smirk the closest Danny had seen him to a smile in years
"Ferris it was a pleasure working with you for all of those years and you've been a great customer... yet I must ask you to never return here again and you can keep the extra money. Just give me the pay for bringing in an exotic creature and we end our dealings at that" Danny said staring at the elf the conflict within him evident even to Ferris
"Very well then here is your pay." Ferris said without a bit of remorse or regret and left some money for Danny on his counter then turned and left the store. Danny sat there at the counter and stared at the retreating figure of Ferris his once long time friend and now... one time customer who had requested a creature that had probably cost him a piece of his own soul. Taking the money slowly Danny left the store and headed to the temple of Oth to pray for forgiveness even if he knew he would receive none.
Last edited by walkingbyself on Mon Aug 15, 2011 4:28 pm; edited 2 times in total | |
|  | | walkingbyself
Great warrior
Posts : 453
Join date : 2011-02-15
Age : 35
Location : United States
| | Subject: Re: Pet Store Horror's Sat Aug 06, 2011 2:04 am | |
| Growing Pains - Spoiler:
The Negavian Middle Tier
Ferris had been living in the Negavian Middle Tier for most of his adult life as an expert potions master. Having spent most of that time studying and taking notes of how everything contributes in some small way to making a potion of some sorts. Whether it be some simple potion of healing to something as complicated as restoring a lost limb from nothing he had studied and mastered their creation. Yet there was one potion he had as of yet to create and which he had hopped to be able to create sometime in the future.
Returning to his two floor plain exterior looking house Ferris looked around to ensure he wasn't being followed and once he was sure squinted his eye's and entered locking the door behind him. Going further in past the initial hallway the house quickly lost any semblance of a "house" to any normal standards and quickly turned into one large laboratory of sorts. With glass containers holding strange liquids with varying color's items stacked on shelf's and hanging in the middle of the room on ropes or strings. A strange faint odor could be smelt through out the building and to Ferries this was home quickly walking from the door inside Ferris checked on his many different potions and items and writing down notes on different pieces of parchment next to each item before moving on.
After making a complete round through the first floor Ferris made his way to the stairs and up to the next floor where strangely enough it looked far more normal then the rooms below. A few random items were still left on shelves their purpose unknown to any but Ferris yet not a single potion in sight. Entering in one room revealed it to be lined with shelf upon shelf of books and notes all of which Ferris had either written himself or collected over the years in his studies. And in the center of the room was a large table with more papers and items and more then a few books Ferris took his notes there and sat down and began to transcribe his notes from common to elvish where upon he destroyed the originals by fire.
And Ferris day would have ended at that if not for one thing...
"Hello master. Welcome home I have kept the house well in your absence I hope my performance is of to your liking." asked a young girlish voice from behind Ferris
At that Ferris was reminded of what he was now sharing his home with for the last five years and his face instantly turned into a scowl before he rounded on the source of the offending voice.
"As I had came inside the house I saw numerous things wrong! Many of my potions were left unattended going past their time needed to sit until being distilled into the next step! Several of the items had been moved and rearranged to the point I could not tell where anything was! And as I came in I noticed a particular odor that made the hairs in my nose cringe!" Ferris shouted at the small form of a little girl who looked to be only five years old with short red hair and a little tattered brown shirt who was bowing before him. And that is where the semblance of any human part ended as after her waist was a back snake tail that was about three times her height.
"M... my apologies master at my failings. But you had instructed me to not touch your potions and to move around your items so that you could 'walk around without stepping on something' and the odor of which you speak is regretfully the potion you were working on in the lower working area I believe it has failed to come to fruition again." the little naga child said sadly yet with enough confidence to finish her explanation
With a sneer Ferris reached back to slap the child but stopped inches from her face. As he looked at her he saw a slight peeling piece of skin on her face.
"Creature what day is it exactly now?"Ferris demanded staring at the piece of skin on her face
"Master it is the 21st day of this monthly cycle which is the 4th month of the yearly cycle." the little naga replied
"I know that beast! What I want to know is what day is today in your blasted cycle of life that blights this world!" Ferris demanded reaching out and yanking on the piece of skin peeling it from her face in one long pull that ended at her neck holding the skin in front of her.
"Master it would appear that today is the beginning of my shedding cycle... I shall endeavor more to ensure you find none of my shedding left lying about." she finished lifting her head up to stare at the piece of skin
"You had better damn well have! Or I will make sure you pay for each piece of skin I find left laying about!" Ferris shouted throwing the piece of skin at her face before returning to his notes and books again.
"As you will master." the naga replied simply and left the room quietly closing the door behind her.
......
Five years... it had been five years since Ferris had taken that egg from the female naga down in Danny's shop and killed her. In in the first week after having killed the mother and stolen the egg it had hatched a small baby female naga a sight that would have left many women going ah at the sight as it made its first in everything upon its first day in the world. But for Ferris all he saw was a blight to the world and something that he would have to put up with for the next several decades before he could do what he had intentioned to do with the small creature.
Having immediately put the thing to work from the first day Ferris mercilessly beat into her that he was her superior in every way imaginable. And that if she were to try and do anything he deemed she should not be able to... well the many scars already upon her small body were proof enough to what were the consequences. And as she left her master alone she quietly fled down stairs into the small corner that Ferris had designated as "her" territory where she was allowed to stay at when he had no use for her and she had no other chores or tasking to accomplish for him.
Her little area being a small spot under a window so that she could get a few of the suns healthy rays to recharge her small body. But it also was a reminder that if she was able to feel the sun on her skin she had slept to long and that Ferris would be more then upset at her. The large burn mark on her tail was a lesson itself for learning never to sleep in while Ferris was awake and unluckily for her Ferris rarely if ever needed more then four hours of sleep until he awoke and he always expected her to be awake and ready to do as he wanted her to when he woke.
Coiling her tail into a small circle she gently laid her upper half down upon her make shift bed and tried to go to sleep. Yet that itchy feeling she always had when she began to shed just would not let her sleep and she knew if not taken care of soon would keep her from getting any sleep at all.
"Stupid shedding skin errr... why must you keep me up!" she bemoaned quietly reaching all over her body to get at the area's that itched the most yet was unable to reach them all.
She would have kept going at this for all of the night to if not for a single tap on her window which caused her to pause. Could it be? Was it time for him to give her visit again?! Carefully and quietly the little naga looked up to the window and saw the smiling face of her only real friend she knew a little human boy. Who had by some accident found out some time ago that Ferris was secretly keeping her in her house and had befriended her rather quickly and was the only reason she hadn't fallen into think herself a stupid mindless beast her master wanted her to believe she was.
"Sala! Hey Sala! Open the window!" he cried quietly seeing her up and awake and with a smile Sala quietly opened the window and reached outside and grabbed a hold of the small boy and yanked him in with a very tight hug.
"Oh Sascha!!! I had almost thought you had forgotten me!" Sala squealed quietly hugging him tightly with her arms and tail a few tears of joy in her eye's
"Sala... your kinda squeezing me to hard... let go please..." he cried as Sala instantly slacked off apologizing
"No, its alright Sala you didn't hurt me. But... you seem to be shedding again." Sascha said picking off a piece of her skin from his shoulder and holding it between the both of them with a smile
"Oh no you weren't supposed to see that!" Sala cried quickly grabbing the skin from him and stashing it between her coils for her to dispose of later before looking back at him a little bit ashamed and blushing.
"Don't worry Sala besides it's not like this is the first time you ever shed before right?" Sascha said with a knowing smile
"N... no it's just... I don't like people seeing me when I shed!" she cried out backing away from him slightly
"What people? Unless you actually leave his house the only people that ever actually see you are myself and him." Sascha said with a not so subtle mark of dislike at the mention of Ferris
"Huu. Your right... but still it just seems like its nasty that I shed and leave my skin everywhere when I do!" Sala cried out shaking her head back and forth eye's closed in disgust. Sascha looked at his friend and crossed his arms looking at her like she was a bit crazy knowing full well that this was just another part of Ferris imparting his teachings into her.
"Salafeta." Sascha said in an ordering tone "Get a grip on yourself it is normal for you to shed! You should not be ashamed to do anything that your body normally does! Heck you should be happy! Proud even! Your shedding your skin! That means you are slowly growing bigger and will one day be more then a match for him and will be able to escape this place!" Sascha said defiantly grabbing a hold of her shoulders forcing her to look him in the eye's
"B... but!" Sala stuttered trying to voice an argument
"No, buts! And really you have no butt to speak of... but that's not the point! You really should never be ashamed of your self your a unique person and it is only because he wont let you see that you are that you think your not." Sascha started off jokingly and finished seriously.
"Now turn around for me I bet you've been itching all day haven't you?" Sascha said with a smile. At that Sala blushed a deep red and nodded turning her back to him slowly showing her skin peeling like mad on her back.
"Please be gentle... I don't want to wake him up." Sala warned already knowing that Sascha was going to go crazy and get just about every spot he could reach. At that Sascha only smiled and leaned forward and began to get her back scratching her back getting all the spots she felt that had been itching her all day long. Gently oooing and ahing at his help she pointed to spots she would never have reached and as she felt the different spots shift she pointed them out as well until her entire back no longer itched and she sat there happily with a content look on her face something she hadn't felt in a while now.
"Thank you... that feels so much better now." Salafeta said quietly moving her back around happily as it no longer itched
"No worries Sala." Sascha said with a smile as she turned around to face him "I'll be back tomorrow night to help you get the rest off. Oh and by the way your new skin is a lot softer when the old peels off it feels kinda funny yet neat." Sascha said picking off what little of her skin was still on his hands that wasn't on the floor now.
"Oh! I'm so sorry!" Sala said grabbing her the piece's of sheded skin and stashing it away blushing yet again.
"Don't worry I'm a boy! Boy's like gross things! And before you say anything no your not gross. Now can you please help me get back outside?" Sascha asked with a smile
"Okay. But you promise you'll be back again tomorrow night?" Salafeta asked quietly helping him up to the window
"Of course! Were friends right? That's what friends do! We make and keep promises!" Sascha said crawling back out the window "Now get some sleep and I will see you later I promise!" Sascha said once back outside looking at Sala
"Promise!" Sala said happily and closed the window as Sascha left and went to his own house
The next day went just pretty much just as yesterday had but her itch had returned and slowly crept its way up her tail to her neck again by the end of the day and was as such it was any wonder she had managed to get anything completed by the time Ferris returned that night expecting find to find the whole house covered in her old skin.
"Welcome home master the house is just as you had wished it I have completed all your tasks as wished and have kept all my old skins from your sight." Sala said bowing to the elf in his study once more
"I am actually impressed beast I came back to find the house completely ruined and a smoldering mess when I came back so when I did come back and it wasn't I must say I had my hopes up believing you had finally departed this life and ended your blight upon this world. Yet now I am forced to reconsider that fact as here you are still alive and your presence still befouling my house." Ferris said with so much venom as he stared down at Sala she could practically feel the venom on her skin as it made that strange crawling feeling like something was under her skin and wanted out.
It was at that point Sala lost her composure and began to scratch at her self trying to get her old skin off as her whole body seemed to at once cry out at the now overly tight skin demanding to be let out.
"AHH!" Sala cried trying to scratch her body but felt the sting of Ferris slapping her across the face sending her falling backwards onto the ground on top of her tail.
"Stupid creature! Do not do that in front of me! Get out get out get out!" Ferris hollered pointing to the door standing the veins in his neck visibly bulging and his face set in expression of extreme hate and dislike as he had stood up at her shedding.
"As... you wish... master" Sala cried fleeing from his study at such a pace she almost forgot to close the door to his study.
"Stupid beast! Only a few more years Ferris. Only a few more years and then you can be done with this nightmare and claim the title of a renowned alchemist through out the world!" Ferris said with a heavy sigh rubbing his brow trying to forget the damnable beast as he sat down slowly.
Sala had fled down the stairs and to her spot in such a hurry that she accidentally had hit a few of the tables with Ferris's potions and items on them knocking them around and spilling a few of them onto the table's. Normally this would have been a cause for her to stop and panic at what she had done yet her body cried out to be let out if the prison her old skin had become crying as she hurried to her spot. Once there she began to move about hurriedly scratching and tearing at every inch of her body trying to get the old skin off but to as of yet no avail as it just seemed as if it would not come off. Crying out Sala began to wonder why her skin just would not come off and where was Sascha he had promised to be here and help her with this!
So locked up in what she was doing she almost completely missed the small tap on the window and as soon as she heard it locked her eye's on the source her eye's in tears of frustration. But at seeing Sascha's smiling face she instantly felt relived a little and opened the window quickly for him to get inside.
"Quickly please! It... it itches so and it wont come off!" Sala exclaimed stretching around all over to pick and scratch at her body.
"Hold on don't worry! I'll help!" Sascha said and began to pick at the skin on her back holding her as steady as he could with his own body while Sala continued to move about like she was possessed. Scrabbling around at her whole body trying to get out of her old skin Sala continued to cry out not caring at this point if Ferris heard her or not she just couldn't take it any more!
Then sweet release came as Sascha finally got the skin on her back that had already come off to peel further going up and over her head. It took a while to get up past her head but once it was it was only a matter of sliding her whole body out of its old skin. In the end it took a total of about thirty minutes for the two of them to get all of the old skin completely off of Salafeta.
Yet to them it felt like hours and both were left gasping for breath afterwards in the moon light. As Sala was left laying on her back and on top of her tail while Sascha was on top of her stomach eye's barely open. And to their right a little bit out of the way in the center of the room a near exact skin replica of Salafeta laying useless and unseeingly of life.
"That... was long..." Sala said gasping for breath
"Yeah no kidding heh but look at you now!" Sascha said tiredly trying to sit up "You have to be twice as long as you were before!" Sascha said with a tired smile looking at Sala
"Hehe maybe but I'm still small though compared to him." Sala giggled looking over her body and tail noticing how much bigger she was now as well and with a sigh sat up very very slowly and tiredly
"So what are you going to do with your old you?" Sascha said sitting with his back against the window looking at Salafeta's old skin
"Same thing I always do with old skin..." Sala paused as her stomach could be heard and she immediately blushed a bright red looking back at Sascha his eyes wide. And then he closed them tightly as he broke out in laughter.
"Pfft haha! Oh so that's what you do with them huh? Well miss hungry I had better be going now before I become a part of the menu!" Sascha said laughing clutching his side and opened them giving his friend a knowing look he could trust her no matter what.
"What! I would never! Oh hehe that was a joke hehe yeah you better go home before I eat you instead! Rawr! Hehe" Sala said happily giving a mock attempt to eat him by munching on the top of his head.
"Hey cut that out Salafeta! Hehe alright bye Sala talk to you later!" Sascha said climbing out of the window and took off running to his home.
"Hehe I wonder if I should tell him how he tastes? Nah."Salafeta said to herself watching her friend leave again with a small childishly smile licking her lips before shaking her head erasing the thought from her head.
Salafeta then looked to her old skin and back to her spot by the window and then back to her old skin again. "I'll take care of it in the morning." Salafeta shrugged taking the old skin and slept peacefully with dreams of one day being big enough to escape from this place and Ferris forever.
Last edited by walkingbyself on Mon Aug 15, 2011 4:28 pm; edited 2 times in total | |
| | | | walkingbyself
Great warrior
Posts : 453
Join date : 2011-02-15
Age : 35
Location : United States
| | Subject: Re: Pet Store Horror's Sat Aug 06, 2011 2:12 am | |
| Cruel and Unusual Punishments - Spoiler:
"Beast! Beast where are you!" yelled Ferris looking considerably older now then he had several years prior yet then again for an elf that hated with every fiber of his being the thing he had to live with for the last several years then one could understand just why he looked far older then the magical restorative properties of Felarya would have let him look like.
"Show yourself and claim your responsibility for this mess you have made!" Ferris shouted again walking through out the first floor of the house having already checked the spot in the house he had designated as her living area already.
"If you don't show yourself now I will ensure your punishment will be as such that you never forget it!" Ferris continued to shout
Meanwhile a few yards away outside of the house a now nineteen year old Sala played happily with her great friend Sascha playing one of their favorite games tag.
"Ha! I got you now Sala! There's no escaping me now!" Sascha shouted cornering Sala in a dark corner within a small abandoned back alley that allowed the both of them room to run and still remain unseen to any but the most avid searcher who knew what to look for.
"Heh so you think Sascha!" Sala hissed happily. At that even Sascha who had been Sala's friend for the last several years began to back away slowly.
"Easy now Sala. No need to get... Ahhh!" Sascha screamed as Sala launched herself at him and bowled him over in an embrace as they rolled forward until Sala crashed into a wall.
"Haha! You should have seen your face! It was priceless! Hehe" Sala laughed as she slowly uncoiled herself from Sascha and helped him back up with her tail.
Looking at Sala now she now stood at exactly the same height as Sascha while her tail was now more then four times her height. Her red hair hung loosely down to her shoulder blades and her green eye's more full of life and hope then when she had been at five. Yet her body was still covered in more and more scars to the point both Sala and Sascha doubted they would ever go away. But the pain she got from those were a small price to pay for spending her days with Sascha in their little hideout that Sascha had found and had helped Sala dig a tunnel from Ferris house to it.
"Very funny Sala. You know your stronger then me." Sascha said with a laugh as he stood up
"What? Little ol' me stronger then a boy? Oh why I never would have thought!" Sala laughed grinning widely showing her "teeth" which were actually fangs that were recessed into her gums and only came out when she had to use them.
However, much unlike most other naga's who only had two she had four fangs thus was now why whenever Ferris came near her he always had an anti-venom at the ready. Yet Ferris had yet to actually distil a proper anti-venom to her poison as she could hear him loudly cursing every night as each time he "milked" her venom it would have changed some different property and thus why Ferris would always keep his distance from her mouth and a dagger constantly at his side dipped in a poison of his own making while anywhere near her tail.
"Beast!" Sala barely heard coming from the tunnel they had dug gave a heavy sigh as she began to head back to her home.
"Looks like he is in need of me again Sascha I'll talk to you again same time tomorrow okay?" Sala explained to Sascha waiting right outside her tunnel
"Okay Sala I'll hold you to it but you had better come back here with something to eat I'm starving!" Sascha bemoaned grabbing his gut and walking around like a starved begger.
"Hehe, Sascha you do know your going to have to return there sooner or later otherwise they might just put you up for lost for good!" Sala said playfully pushing him gently with her tail "Besides at least there you have people who don't hate you with every fiber of their being and show their hate by leaving scars that are visible to all to see." Sala said holding her tail in front of him to remind him of what she had to deal with
"Alright Sala but if Father Yorik says it is time for me to become a monk to the temple of Oth like he and the rest of the teens my age I'm leaving no question asked!" Sascha said giving Sala a very serious look
Sascha had revealed to Sala several years ago that he didn't actually have a family but rather lived in an orphanage with the other kids who had been orphaned in Felarya because their parents had been eaten by one thing or another in the Felaryan jungle. Yet Sascha had explained that even though his living quarters may have been slightly better the other kids their still hated and despised him and one another. Fighting each other until a priest or monk came in to break up the fights. So Sascha had to deal with a world that still hated him but unlike Sala he had people who may not genuinely love him but still cared enough to ensure his health.
"Heh well you could always get a job and do something productive." Sala said sarcastically rolling her eye's "Or..." Sala added locking her eye's on him and giving him a smirk that even he knew was her being serious
"Or I could help break you out of Ferris's place and the both of us become the most widely known adventurer's in the world." Sascha said with a smile crossing his arms with a smile the both of them having contemplated and thought out the idea for a while now ever since Sascha had become of the age where he had to choose between coming a priest of the temple of Oth or finding a job in Negav or becoming an adventurer. Risking his life and limb for almost no gains or promise of any rewards what so ever.
"You do know you could do so right now and he would never be able to stop you right? You are by now stronger then him and can easily overpower him should he try to stop you from escaping." Sascha reminded her
"I know! I know! Yet I keep having the feeling that if I tried to escape while he was still around I would have to deal with him constantly chasing me for the rest of my life! That is just one prospect I don't want to have to live with knowing that some where he is just waiting for me to slip up and catch me again!" Sala cried as the idea of always being on her guard from a vengeful Ferris constantly haunting her quickly came to the fore of her mind
"Well whenever your ready to try you know exactly where to come find me." Sascha said crossing his arms behind his head as he sat against a wall
"Yeah, yeah right here I know. Bye Sascha see you soon!" Sala said waving her hand and tail goodbye as she entered her tunnel returning back home
"Hmm... maybe I should go back... if just for the one night to get something to eat and then leave for good as they give me the question on what I'm going to do." Sascha said standing back up and looking skywards and towards the tallest building he could see in Negav the Isolon Eye before turning back around and leaving the alley abandoned yet again heading back to the orphanage run bu the temple of Oth.
"Beast! This is your last warning show your self now and I might go easy on you!" Ferris shouted into the empty house.
"I am right here master. What is it you would have me do? All my chores and tasks are complete and everything is in fine enough order that I really do not see the reason for you raised voice." Sala said bowing slightly but no where as far as she had when she were a child.
"Beast where the hell have you been! I have been searching for you for the last hour!: Ferris demanded without a hint of concern in his voice but every bit of anger and malice
"I have been inside my new domicile that you have so graciously deigned to give me." Sala said sarcastically rolling her eye's quickly as she blinked
"No you have not! That was the first place I looked and you were not there so tell me now where you have been or so help me I will force you to tell me!" Ferris demanded picking out a yellowish potion from his belt and held it before him.
"And dont tell me you weren't playing with that boy! I can practically smell him coming off of you!" Ferris yelled pointing an accusing finger at her as if she had actually eaten her one and only friend.
Ferris had learned about Sascha about a year ago when he had caught him escaping from the house after helping Sala with her latest shedding which had helped her reach her current height. That night Ferris had warned Sascha upon pain of death that if he ever caught him within his house again he would ensure that he never left it again. It was also that night that Ferris had begun collecting ingredients for another secret potion he had researched a long time ago and started working a new.
"Very well master if you must know I was outside and I was with my freind and we were playing together enjoying our time after I had completed all of my chores and tasks." Sala informed him feeling smug in the fact that she had managed to work within Ferris rules yet still disobey him to the point but not quite past his set rules after all he had never yet said she could not leave the house.
"You did what!" Ferris practically exploded his eye's almost as wide is a stop light at a Negav intersection "You dare to make a mockery of me! I who have given you everything and shown you more care and love then the rest of the entire world and you dare to mock me!" Ferris shouted his eye's becoming so blood shot Sala could see the individual veins in each of his eye's pulsing
"Apparently I have been to lax on you lately and now it seems I must crack down on your rouge behavior and show you the punishment for disobeying me!" Ferris shouted reaching for something on his belt
"Oh no not the knife! Don't hurt me!" Sala cried sarcastically giving her most frightened look possible. Her adolescent behavior truly showing it's self as she rolled her eye's at Ferris having long since learned to ignore Ferris and his punishment.
At that Ferris paused and stared at Sala as if studying her looking for something he could use as leverage against her to put her into place. And with an look of malice and hate Ferris stared Sala down as he spoke very eerily calm.
"Very well then. It would seem have learned to build up a tolerance to pain and torture of your body." Ferris spoke calmly releasing whatever it was he had been holding back into his belt. "Tell me then beast how old is that human friend of yours?" Ferris asked giving a particular emphasis on what Sascha was.
"Why what's your sudden interest in him." Sala asked catching the sudden change in how Ferris was talking
"Ah yes, he is just slightly older then you isn't he? And the fact that he's an orphan means that the priests at the temple of Oth are going to either kick him out or accept him into their order. And knowing you and your influence on him he isn't going to take the choice of joining the priests" Ferris stated with an smile so crooked and evil it would have caused a succubus to pause
"What are you getting at master." Sala demanded coiling up not liking where this was going
"Never you mind beast! Your mind controlling of one life is about to cost someone their life! Now shut up and return to you area while I plan out your punishment!" Ferris shouted pointing Sala to her spot near the window
"Not until you tell me what your going to do to my friend." Sala said oh so quietly both her hands balled into fists and her starring at him at the first time as a threat to not herself but to someone else.
"Whats this? Does the creature have a sort of attachment to its mind slave?" Ferris said watching Sala with an amused sneer
"You will not touch him or come anywhere near him or so help me I will kill you." Sala warned Ferris not willing to risk him doing anything to her only friend
"You will do nothing!" Ferris shouted as he reached into his belt and threw a dart that punctured into her neck
"Ow! What the hell!" Sala cried out removing the dart and suddenly feeling very dizzy as the room started to spin "What have you done to me!" Sala cried out trying to keep her balance focusing on Ferris
"A simple poison that I have improved on causes dizziness drowsiness and once the affected comes to they obey without question. It's actually one of my signature concoctions I made about twenty years ago." Ferris said remembering the brief and intense encounter with Sala's mother as he unconsciously rubbed his neck
"You... you bastard!" Sala shouted trying to stay up unsuccessfully crashing down onto the ground "I'll... I'll kill you!" Sala shouted at the top of her lungs from the ground unable to move tears in her eye's
"Oh do shut up." Ferris said lifting a foot and stomping on Sala's face knocking her out cold
"Sala, hey Sala wake up!" Sascha whispered tapping on the window seeing her laying right below it like normal "Common Sala wake up and let me in already!" Sascha said tapping the once more
Sala slowly awoke from her sleep her mind in a very very deep fog and at hearing being told to wake up did so slowly.
"About time you woke up sleepy! Come on open the window and let me in!" Sascha urged
Sala hearing Sascha asking her to let the window open did so and it was only then when the cooler outside air rushed in hitting her in the face did she realize something was wrong. However, it was already to late to warn or stop Sascha as he climbed in the window.
"Oh... Sascha don't come any closer... I don't... I don't feel." Sala said barely able to speak before Ferris stepped in
"Don't feel? Don't feel what?" Sascha asked
"Grab him!" Ferris ordered from somewhere within the shadows of the room. At that Sala shot her tail out and coiled it around Sascha tight enough to where he wouldn't escape.
"Ah! What the hell! Oh no! Sala quickly let me go! Ferris is here!" Sascha pleaded struggling in her grasp yet Sala gave no response her face as expressionless and emotionless as a golem "Sala! Salafeta wake up!" Sascha cried out
"Silence him" Ferris ordered at that Sala squeezed Sascha harder with her tail causing him to cry out in pain
"Ah!!! Sala whatever he's done to you snap out of it your hurting me!" Sascha cried out in pain feeling something break in his body
"I said silence him!" Ferris ordered again and Sala squeezed harder causing Sascha to be in more pain
"Ah! Stop this please Sala your hurting me!" Sascha cried out with tears in his eyes
"Shut up boy or do you want me to have her squeeze you tighter." Ferris demanded starring Sascha directly in the eye's
"What have you done to her you bastard elf!" Sascha yelled unable to move at all sure now that one or more of his ribs were broken
"Nothing I have made my pet simply more obedient seeing as how independent thought for herself proved to be to much for her to handle and do her tasks as I have expected of her!" Ferris yelled at both Sascha and Sala giving Sala a cold stare as if expecting her to say something back before returning to Sascha
"Now then boy I do recall that I had warned you not to enter my house ever again." Ferris said walking up to Sascha removing a brown colored potion from his belt
"What... what is that!" Sascha yelled watching Ferris pull out the potion
"This my dear boy is something I have been working on ever since your last visit to my home. And trust me it's not so much as what this potion is going to do to you that you should worry about as much as what will happen to you after." Ferris said stopping next to him coiled in sala's tail unable to move
"If you think I'm going to drink that stuff your more crazy and stupid then I thought." Sascha said trying to get away from Ferris
"Oh you'll drink it one way or another." Ferris whispered into Sascha's ear before tacking a step back "Squeeze him!" Ferris ordered and Sala squeezed harder breaking another bone in Sascha's body as he cried out.
"Ah! You fucking bastard!" Sascha cried out at the increased pressure
"More!" Ferris shouted watching the display before him with a strange sense of satisfaction. While Sala increased the pressure on Sascha not knowing what she was doing to her friend.
"AH HA! Sala stop this! I cant take much more!" Sascha cried out as he cried in pain as he felt every single part of his body hurt
"Then take the potion and it will stop." Ferris offered from where he was
"F... Fuck you!" Sascha shouted spitting at Ferris best he could
"Tsk typical squeeze him some more!" Ferris ordered
"Ahhh!" Sascha cried out as it felt as if his body was about to be squeezed to a pulp. But while he screamed out he felt a cool liquid start going down his throat as Ferris shoved the pottion into his throat and closed his nose shut.
"Drink it or she turns you into a unrecognizable pulp!" Ferris shouted holding the potion in Sascha's mouth
Sascha unwillingly drank the majority of the potion choking on some of it but eventually emptied the whole container for the potion and swallowed as Ferris stepped to the side and watched. At first Sascha was about to start shouting again but then he felt strange and then looked around and noticed how everything seemed to be getting bigger.
"Wha... what have you done to me!" shouted Sascha as he slowly shrunk from his normal height
"A rather complex potion using ingredients that are rare enough to cost a small fortune to buy or dangerous enough to collect from the wilds. You should feel fortunate boy your my first test subject for this potion though most certainly my last as I had to go through extreme lengths to collect those ingredients and had to call in favors from those I'd wished better off forgotten. But to answer your question that potion specifically causes the drinker to in what was once theory shrink in size from their normal height to that of a three inch tall neera." Ferris explained walking around Salafeta watching Sascha disappear within her coils until he dropped out down below on the ground in pain on top of his clothes. As Ferris reached down and picked him up holding him away from himself in disgust.
"Alright you shrunk me and tortured me now let me go!" Sasha yelled from within Ferris grasp
"Oh no this is only the beginning as I am not just punishing you but her as well." Ferris said with an evil grin pointing at Sala
"What are you going to do to her if you hurt her in any way I'll!" Sascha started
"You'll do nothing!" Ferris shouted shaking Sascha in his hand reminding him of the size difference "Beast! I have decided that seeing as how punishing you for your misbehavior nolonger works, I have decided to try something different" Ferris said calmly and with enough care one would have thought he had actually meant it
"And what is that master?" Sala asked calmly eying him cautiously
"Instead of punishing you as I used to I will now offer you a treat for your good behavior and to demonstrate just how sincere I am I will give you a very tasty sample which I am sure you will enjoy." Ferris said walking to the heavily entranced Sala
"Now hold out your hand." Ferris asked Sala as he approached her his hand with Sascha out to her.
"Take your treat from my hand and hold it tightly ignore any sounds or movements that may come from it." Ferris said holding his hand out to her. And much to Sascha's horror watched as Sala took him from Ferris holding him tightly.
"Now then beast you may eat your snack but please do enjoy it first." Ferris said face looking like he had just won some giant prize as he watched Sala lick her lips and lift Sascha up above her mouth holding him by a leg
"Sala don't do this! Please don't do this! If you do you'll... AHHH!" Sascha yelled as Sala dropped him into her mouth and closed it shut behind him "Oh god, oh god. Sala please spit me out! I'm not a snack I'm your friend Sascha! We've known each other for nineteen years!" Sascha cried out to Sala as she tasted him moving him about inside her mouth with her tongue enjoying his taste. Wrapping her tongue around his entire body and squeezing gently she lifted him to the roof of her mouth and rubbed her tongue over him even more.
"Salafeta stop this I'm not a snack! I'm your friend! I'm a human! A person just like you!" Sascha yelled out as she pushed him to her cheeks giving a quiet "mmm" sound as she enjoyed his taste having never tasted something living before only the spare scraps that Ferris would give her or food that had gone past its expiration.
Closing her eye's ever so softly Sala enjoyed her tasty little treat ignoring anything Sascha said just like Ferris had instructed her to. And from how delicious he tasted Sala decided that she might actually behave a little more around Ferris if the snacks he promised all tasted this good.
Sala probably would have stayed like that for the next thirty minutes enjoying this surprisingly great tasting treat if Ferris had not spoken up again. "Are you enjoying your little treat beast?" Ferris asked walking around in front of Sala his hands clasped together behind his back.
At which her only response was a delighted "Mhmm" as she nodded her head up and down slowly still enjoying Sascha's taste
"Good now then. Swallow it and do not spit it out cough it out or puke it out or anything. I want you to enjoy it to the fullest so digest it so thoroughly that you will never forget what it feels like to have fully eaten a treat as tasteful as this one." Ferris said with an evil crooked smile as he stared at her.
"But this one taste's so good! And it moves! I don't want to eat it just yet I can still taste its flavor!" Sala pouted looking at Ferris much like a child would their parent at being told to stop playing with their food
"There will be many more where that came from beast. Now do as I asked and we can continue and you just may earn yourself another treat by the end of the night!" Ferris said excitedly egging her on with promises that she had no idea were false
Looking Ferris in the eye's Sala tilted her head backwards letting Sascha fall to the back of her mouth slowly allowing her to get one last long final taste of the first of many such tasty treats she thought hopefully.
"Sala! No don't! If... if you swallow me I'm never going to come back out! Please Sala don't do this I don't want to die!" Sascha cried out trying to get a hold on her tongue somehow as he slid towards the back of her mouth and closer to her throat. But just before he reached her throat he managed to get a hold of the tip of one of her bottom fangs and held on for dear life.
"Please Sala don't do this I'm your friend Sascha cant you even tell its me! Please Sala don't eat me I... I don't want to die... I... I want to live... please don't... don't eat me!" Sascha cried out tears in his eye's as Sala moved the tip of her tongue closer to him. "No... no... please no... NO! AHHH" Sascha screamed out as Sala pushed him off of her fang and to her throat where upon she swallowed him all at once with one satisfying gulp.
"Mhmm thank you master that was a most... delightful treat you gave me." Sala said still licking her lips and swallowing the saliva that had built up from having tasted her treat for such a long time.
"Good I am glad you enjoyed it creature now..." Ferris said pausing as he enjoyed the moment to its fullest with Sala completely unaware of what she had just done. Having just tasted and eaten her one and only friend as if he was nothing more then a snack to her much like one of the giant naga's in the wilds would have. "Awaken... Awaken and face the truth of reality and what you have just done." Ferris said as he saw the confused look on her face as she slowly tried to get an understanding on what had just transpired.
"Wha... what just happened?" Sala asked nobody confused as to why she felt so good as she lowly tried to piece her memory together from the fog of Ferris's poison that had kept her under his complete control
"What has just happened beast." Ferris spat at her with every bit of the exact same malice and hate as he previously did "Is that you have just eaten your one and only friend and I must say it looked like you enjoyed him quite a lot." Ferris said with devious satisfaction seeing the look on her face as she stared at him and then at herself.
"No... you... you lie! That's impossible I would never eat him! I could never eat Sascha!" Sala yelled using her tail as a spear and stabbing at Ferris who stepped to the side as she missed.
"Oh do I now? Who's the one really lieing now? Think real hard beast for the first time in your useless life use what little bit of a brain nature deemed fit to give you. Were you not sleeping not that long ago? And were you not awakened by your friend to let him inside MY house." Ferris said with an sense of self satisfaction as the pieces finally began to click into place for Sala
"No..." was all she could manage to say her eye's starting to go wide with realization
"Then think yet more still why would I ever deem to be nice to something like you? Why would I give you anything that might be anything close to resembling an award for behaving when I already demand it of you. And then finally look around and tell me just where exactly is your friend right now." Ferris said smugly crossing his arms narrowing his eyes at her giveing her a knowing smirk
"He's... he's..." Sala could barely speak her eye's wider then dinner plates as she stared down to her stomach "No Sascha please speak to me tell me this isn't true!" Sala pleaded looking down at herself while Ferris watched in amusement
"Sala! Help please spit me out now! Your stomach it... it thinks I'm food quickly before it starts to digest me!" Sascha called out weakly from within her
"Sascha! No!" Sala cried as she wanted to get him out yet try as she might... for some reason her body would not let her do it. It simply would not cough him up or spit him out it was as if her own body was working against her!
"Master you have to stop this please! I don't want to eat him!" Sala begged turning to Ferris tears in her eye's
"Why on earth would I ever want to do that?" Ferris said maliciously a grin on his face as he soaked up the look upon her face
"I promise I'll do anything you want! I'll stop speaking to him I'll stop leaving I'll stop failing and... and.... please just make this stop! Just please help me get him out of meee!" Sala cried loudly as she stared at Ferris as her only hope her only savior for both herself and her friend.
"No" Ferris said flatly and with the authority of that of a judge jury and executioner.
"Sala! Help me!" Sascha yelled again hitting his fist against her stomach drawing her attention back to him.
"Sascha! Hold on I'll... I'll get you out somehow just hold on!" Sala panicked rushing off through the house to find something to help her get him out faster
"You will do no such thing beast stay exactly where you are!" Ferris yelled ordering her once more as the poison still maintained it's hold on her causing her obey him to the point.
"You cant do this! It's just not right! This isn't you master! You don't just kill innocent people for no reason! You have to help us please!" Sala cried out once more turning to Ferris
"I am not the one that is going to kill him beast. You are the one that's going to digest him to the point where none will ever recognize him. And you will be unable to let him out at all as your body digests him just like all your damned vile giant cousins in the jungle that destroyed and ate my entire village!" Ferris yelled stepping forth and punching her right into the stomach "Now be a good pet for once and do as your told and digest your meal!" Ferris shouted back handing her hard enough to send her falling to the floor crashing into one of his tables spilling and tossing his potions that were on it.
"Now then my job is done here tonight. I will expect you awake and ready to perform your duties early in the morning beast." Ferris said calmly and turned around and left the room and Sala alone as if nothing had ever happened. Once Ferris had left Sala kept crying for Sascha promising she would try to find some way to get him out while Sascha kept begging for her to let her out.
"Sascha! Please I... I'll get you don't panic!" Sala cried looking about the room unable to move and grab anything that might have been of help
"Sala hurry your stomach is starting to get hotter and making something liquid like! Hurry please I don't want to die inside of a friend please!" Sascha cried out pounding on the walls of her stomach in the hopes he might trigger some hidden reflex that would let him out
"I'm trying! I'm trying! Just hold on!" Sala cried as she tried to again force herself to spit him out and only finding her body unresponsive even the natural gag reflex would not work at all.
"AH! Why cant I get you out!" Sala shouted grabbing at her hair and staring at her stomach with tears in her eye's after having exhausted every option and found herself back right where she started in the middle of the room. Then her eye's locked onto something that she knew she could use and slowly slithered to it shakily.
"Hold on Sascha... I think I may have found some way to get you out..." Sala said her voice broken and shaken as she grabbed a knife that looked like it had seen better days and to much use.
"Sala what are you doing? What are you thinking? Sala don't do anything crazy!" Sascha warned sensing that something wast right
"I... I have to Sascha I don't want to lose you..." Sala cried holding the knife over her stomach guessing where her stomach might be
"Sala whatever it is your going to do... don't do it... I wouldn't be able to live with myself if you did something horrible to yourself" Sascha warned having some inkling of an idea of what she may have been thinking about doing.
"I... I have to do it Sascha.... it's... it's the only way that I can get you out alive!" Sala cried holding the dagger out ready to plunge it into her stomach.
"Sala don't do it! Stop for a minute and think! Whatever it is your about to do stop and think! If you hurt yourself while trying to get me out what do you think your chances are of hurting me in the process are?!" Sascha cried out trying to reason with her
"I... but I!" Sala tried to argue
"Sala you are a smart person I know you are slow down and think. I want to be out from inside of you just as much as you want me outside of you... but I don't want you to risk hurting yourself to get me out at your expense!" Sascha yelled breaking through to what little remained of her rationality when her panic and need to save Sashca had pretty much taken full control of her
"Rah! Haa aaah!" Sala cried dropping the knife on the ground closing her eye's and falling down on her side rolling her body in frustration "Why! Why cant I do anything! This is unfair! I haven't done anything to deserve this!" Sala continued to cry tossing and turning on the floor
"Sala calm down" Sascha said softly yet loud enough for her to hear him
"It's not fair! I'm so close to you yet unable to help!" Sala cried into her hands unable to do anything else but cry.
"Sala it's... it's alright just please calm down." Sascha repeated himself again
"But I cant your still inside me! I still have to get you out of me otherwise your... your... Ahhhaaaa!" Sala cried yelling in aggravation slamming her tail into a wall denting it. Sala sat there crying to her self rocking herself back and forth as she slowly rubbed her stomach trying to show Sascha that she still cared for him.
"Sala... I... I know I'm not getting out of here... So please just... just calm down so we can at least talk to each other one last time before I... before I... just please calm down Salafeta I know you can." Sascha said trying to calm her down accepting his fate though trying to keep his mind off what was going to happen to him barely.
*Sniff*"Okay Sascha I'll calm down just let me..." Sala paused taking a deep breath closing her eyes and then breathing slowly holding her breath for a couple of seconds. But as she tried her mind instantly went to Sascha "Sascha! I'm so sorry I... I never wanted this to happen please I am so sorry!" Sala cried out as s stream of tears came down from her eye's
"Sala it's okay this is not your fault I know that and so do you!" Sascha cried out to her trying to get her to calm down "Now please calm down... cant we just talk one last time... as close friends?" Sascha asked her
"Oh... okay Sascha." Sala barely managed to stop herself from continuing to cry as she wiped her eye's and wrapping her tail about herself slowly. "So what do you want to talk about... *Sniff* Sascha?" Sala asked sadly sitting down on top of her tail
"Well you know back when we first meet... when we were still kids I had originally came here intending to steal something anything of value... Heh imagine my surprise when instead of finding something to steal... I found you instead." Sascha laughed a little the memory just as vivid now as it was then.'
"Heehee... *sniff* I remember that night... you were so afraid of me you would have thought you'd have peed yourself." Sala giggled remembering as well
"Hey you were just as afraid of me as I was of you! Don't forget that is was me who had to convince you to talk to me!" Sascha said defending himself
"Heehee... myabe but who was it that had kept you from getting hurt when you were getting chased by that group of neko's?" Sala giggled at the thought of a younger Sascha being chased by a small group of neko's who had been upset by something Sascha had said or done to them.
"Hey they doesn't count! Those neko's had always had it out for me! They just choose that day to follow me!" Sascha yelled back
"Heh yeah following you as you ran yelling for my help." Sala laughed cheering up a little and starting to smile
"Fine then how about the time when you got so stuck trying to get through the tunnel I had to push you back through it!" Sascha said with a triumphant grin
"Yeah and you almost got stuck in there with me? Yeah don't think I forgot that incident either Sascha. Hehe I also remember you saying that if you ever got out of there you would swear off ever chasing after women in hard to get places." Sala giggled at the thought
"Well... it would seem I broke my vow... as I still chased after you still... even after that little situation of ours" Sascha said with a laughed with her both of them laughing together again. Even if it was in fact just for these last few moments alone together.
"Sascha... do you like me?" Sala asked him from out of the blue
"Huh? Yes of course I like you were friends aren't we?" Sascha said slowly trying to see what she was getting at
"No do you like me?" Sala asked a little afraid of the answer
"I... oh... Sala I..." Sascha paused having to look inside himself for the answer to that and the pause was all it took for Sala to start to tear up again.
"I... understand if you don't Sascha... I just had to ask" Sala sniffed sadly hating herself for having asked that question
"Sala... you are my friend and I love you as such... heck I love you as though you were the sister I never had! And you pretty much were for me... you were my strength and my will you gave me hope when I had none... when I felt like nothing was ever going to be right and fair... you helped prove to me they would..." Sascha said slowly trying his best to save his already low supply of air while answering her. "So don't think for a second... that I don't like you... I might even love you but I... I just don't know I just cant be certain right now... I cant tell if its my fear making me try to find comfort in the one I am closest to... Or if it's actually real and not some product of the situation that we are in..." Sascha said slower and slower his air getting lower with each breath
"Sascha... I... I didn't mean...!" Sala cried realizing she may have upset hm unintentionally
"It's... It's okay Sala... I like you and I know you like me to... so why don't we leave it at that okay?" Sascha said trying to calm her down so that she wouldn't return to her wallowing in self loathing and loss and thus being unable to talk with him while they still had a chance.
"Okay... Sascha thank you for telling me... I just... I just figured no one ever would like me because..." Sala said sadly stopping her rocking but still with tears in her eye's
"Salafeta don't you ever... ever listen to what that... that heartless bastard of an elf... says about you!" Sascha yelled really getting mad that even now in their last moments that Ferris still somehow managed to affect Sala's judgement of herself and making their time together that much shorter
"You are a better person then him... in every sense of the word!" Sascha shouted disregarding his air for this to remind her that she was a person as well not the monster Ferris kept trying to force her to think she was. "If you... if you continue to think of yourself as less... then I will never rest... and you will have let him win!" Sascha shouted cutting his air dangerously low
"I... I understand Sascha... thank you... for everything..." Sala said rubbing her stomach thankfully and slowly
"You know Sala... I... no matter what happens to me... I... I just want you to know that you were the only one... that made all those years I spent at the orphanage bearable... and I just want to thank you... for being my one... and only... true friend... for all these years and please don't cry when I... I... you know..." Sascha said sadly feeling his time almost running up
"Sascha..." Sala cried sensing the same thing as well
"Please don't cry Sala... You know how when you always cry it makes me sad as well... so please don't cry for me anymore... after all if you think about it... in a way... I will never ever leave you... hehe so you don't always have to be alone." Sascha said sadly nearing the end of his time
"Sascha don't please... don't..." Sala stuttered
"Sala none of this was your fault... though you may feel as though it was... I want you to know... that I forgive you... and that I will always be your friend... Salafeta" Sascha said slower and slower as both the lack of air and Sala's stomach finally kicking in finally got to him drowning out whatever else he might have said as it made the all to familiar sounds of digestion.
"Sascha? Sascha..." Sala cried poking her stomach gently still barely able to feel him moving about inside her "Sas... cha?" Sala asked one last time feeling his movements slowing down and then.
"Sascha?" Sala asked one last time feeling his movements stop once and for all. Her eye's one full of tear's now slowly wept as she both heard and felt nothing from Sascha. Her body frozen in place unable to move Sala just stayed there for a while the only thing she could move was her mouth as if to say something. And then just like that she broke down and began to cry thrashing her body around crying out to any that would listen. And hearing nothing or feeling nothing but the sense of loss and hurt just kept on crying and thrashing about in the room.
And up stairs in his study Ferris sat writing down his notes into his book on his latest successful potion. And finishing the last note closing it on a single note.
"The use of the prototype potion that is aptly labeled as the Shrinking Potion. Is very effective in doing what it's name suggest, but is by far more trouble to collect its ingredients and then make it then it is to use. The current ingredients required to make the potion are as such so rare and few and far in between, that any further such renditions of the potion should be made from far more readily available sources. However, nothing currently available and easily reachable is suitable for such a complicated potion and thus mass reproduction is not advisable. Alas it would seem that the secret to shrinking others and things with ease shall once more rest within the hands of the fairies. Highly recommend using less complicated means of achieving whatever plans that would require such potion. If not to simply rethink the entire plan over from the beginning."
And with that Ferris closed the book put it on a shelf and returned to his chambers unaware of that which he had set into motion. For down on the floor below the last straw had been pulled that had kept back that which had been years of tortured pain and hate for one being. Which had as of until that night been kept in check. But were now set lose and the plans for revenge and escape set to the fore of the mind so much so that it would only be a matter of time until Ferris got exactly what was coming to him.
Last edited by walkingbyself on Mon Aug 15, 2011 4:28 pm; edited 2 times in total | |
| | | | walkingbyself
Great warrior
Posts : 453
Join date : 2011-02-15
Age : 35
Location : United States
| | Subject: Re: Pet Store Horror's Sat Aug 06, 2011 2:16 am | |
| Nukem Forever! - Spoiler:
As the next morning came Ferris woke in his room without the familiar sound of Sala greeting him as she was supposed to do every morning as she was required by Ferris to be awake and ready to serve him before he awoke in the morning's. As Ferris got out of his bed he could already tell this was going to be a bad day the creature a failure and a disobedient problem as it always was had yet to fail in being up before him ready to serve and obey. So as he left his room the first place he went was right to where he had left that despicable creature and found her at exactly the same spot he left her only she looked in terrible shape having only just fallen asleep not that long ago and the room was a complete and utter mess having most of the tables smashed by her tail in frustration and anguish from last night. And disregarding Sala's state immediately focused on the amount of destruction she had caused to the room as he yelled at her.
"BEAST! What the hell have you done to this room!" Ferris shouted as loud as he could while Sala continued to sleep her tail twitching every now and then "Beast! Wake up this instant! Don't you dare ignore me!" Ferries continued and kicked Sala in the side as she gave out a quiet hiss in warning causing Ferris to pause in surprise. But his surprise quickly turned to that of hateful loathing as his eye's squinted in disgust and dislike as the fact she had just hissed at him something she had never done to him before!
"So after caring for you for over nineteen years this is how you repay me?" Ferris asked venomously his hand curled into fist has his right reached for his belt. "I will show you. You ungrateful creature just what happens to those who bite the hands of those who feed them!" Ferris yelled pulling out a knife from his side with a sneer and lifted over his head "Wake up now beast!" yelled Ferris plunging the knife downwards towards Sala's chest
*HISS!* "You! Y... you killed him!" Sala cried out tears in her now reddened eye's as she held Ferris arm with one of her hands shaking "I... I... I'll kill you! I'll kill you!" Sala screeched gripping Ferris arm with a death grip as her eye's narrowed
"Let go of me this instant you beast!" Ferris yelled yanking at his arm to get his arm out of her grasp
"Go... let you go! You wouldn't let him go! So why should I!" Sala yelled throwing him into a wall breaking the last remaining intact shelf and following after him raising herself up giving a low hiss.
"Stupid beast! You dare to challenge me! I will...!" *Smash* Ferris was blindsided by Sala's tail as she swung it hitting him across his side making him crash into the opposite side of the room in mess. "Ha...ha... beast you challenge that which you have no understanding of!" Ferris yelled standing up slowly and shakily
"Do not understand! I do understand you! You are a vile evil wicked creature master!" Sala shouted coiling her tail around Ferris tightly as she squeezed him tighter and tighter "I understand that you are the real monster here you are that which you have constantly told and forced into my head into believing that I was." Sala said standing next to Ferris her coils now wrapped tightly around him
"You dare accuse me of being a monster! Beast you will release me this minute or I will ensure that you are in so much pain that you will... egk!" Ferris threatened and was cut off as Sala tightened her coils to the point where she broke several of his bones
"You will do nothing! I told you I will kill you and I will keep my word now..." Sala paused opening her mouth as her fangs came out from their recessed position's in her mouth "I will keep my word and kill you."
"You couldn't kill me even if you tried." Ferris said starring her in the eye's as Sala came closer to inject her venom into him. And as she got in close Ferris moved his arm dislocating his shoulder and slipped down and out of her coils landing on the floor grabbing his knife again which he had dropped when she had hit him into the wall.
"No I will kill you!" Sala shouted slamming her tail down where Ferris had been
"To slow beast!" Ferris shouted from the other side of the room kneeling down with his knife behind him as he smashed his shoulder into the wall relocating his shoulder. "Now its my turn" Ferris said with a sense of finality and ran at Sala with a speed that only an elf could poses.
And getting in close cutting a long streak into her human half's side causing her to scream out in pain as she swung with her fist to hit him and missed as he ran past. Swinging her tail to catch him Ferris ran to it and leapt over it sideways spinning cutting into her tail as it flew beneath him leaving deep farrow's in her tail as it slammed into a wall. Ferris landed gracefully looking at Sala with a sneer and spat at the ground.
"Pathetic if your going to try and kill me then actually hit me beast!" Ferris yelled dashing at Sala again repositioning his grip on the knife as he went.
"Ah!" Sala shouted swinging her fist around to hit Ferris however she was slower then Ferris and missed as he got in under her swing punched Sala hard in the stomach causing her to double over from the hit. But rather then falling forward like most would from a hit like that Ferris swung his entire arm forward as well as Sala and sent her into the wall behind her. The same one she had thrown him into earlier and left a hole in the wall as her human half broke through the already weakened wall and her snake half was left in the room with Ferris.
"You are a disgrace" Ferris said walking to Sala's human half as she tried to recover from having been thrown. "You talked some high talk yet in the end you are nothing more then a wasteful disgrace." Ferris said stopping near her head as she slowly came to
"I... I will keep my word... I will kill you master... no matter what it takes i will kill you!" Sala shouted as she leapt from where she layed at Ferris who spun to the side but struck his blade out and cut open the front of her stomach
"You will do nothing of the sort beast. Your kind is useful for nothing but the few useful potions ingredients. And one in particular which is the main reason for keeping you so long and why I have been waiting so long before I could kill you yet..." Ferris paused watching as Sala collapsed grabbing her stomach as she collided with the opposite wall from the injury Ferris had gave her. "I will be expecting you to clean up this mess and fix that hole in the wall beast or I will make that wound bigger." Ferris said walking away from Sala putting away his knife and walking out of the house as if nothing had happened.
As Ferris left Sala layed where she was the pain her body was in was simply to much for her already weakened state. Her tail was cut in several places her human half had an nasty gash in the side from where Ferris had used his knife and cut her open. And now a long deep cut that reached down to her insides that had surely injured some organ or another on the knifes passage across her body leaving her in a sad state adding to the pain she felt for being unable to defeat Ferris and repay him in kind for what he did to her and Sascha.
"He's right I am a disgrace... I couldn't even stand up to him and... huu I am useless." Sala cried not moving from her spot as she slowly bleed where she layed not wanting to move. Thinking of the times she spent with Sascha she looked back to the happier moments when he would cheer her up after Ferris would punish her. "Huu... yet... yet Sascha if he saw me like this... he would tell me I wasn't and that Ferris was wrong yet... why do I keep feeling like Ferris is right even though he's wrong?"
As she thought she moved her tail back to herself and slowly sat back up clutching her side with one hand and where Ferris had cut into her stomach with the other as she slowly looked for something to bandage her side and stomach. Having searched through the whole of the bottom floor Salafeta only managed to find a few rags to cover her side to slow down the bleeding and using her shirt to put into the wound in her stomach. Yet still she felt her body slowly starting to go numb from the end of her tail and slowly moving up.
In the past Salafeta had been rather curious about the potions Ferris had been making and had made a brief effort to learn a little about alchemy potions making which he was so adept at and attempted to make a few potions of her own. Of course when Ferris had learned what she was doing he had come down on her and hard. She still had the scar on her arm to show for it but she had already learned all that she needed to get started in alchemy and potion making. Over the years Sala continued to watch and learn from Ferris and though she didn't yet understand the whole process behind his more advanced potions he had been working on she still understood the ways and methods of his simpler potions.
Among his simpler potions were some potions that could close her wounds and repair whatever internal damage Ferris had done to her when he had cut open her stomach with his knife. Ferris always kept his successful potions upstairs for storage and further study or use and was why Sala brought herself back upstairs and into his study where he kept both his notes and his completed potions. Sala could slowly feel herself slipping away as she tried to look for Ferris store of potions she searched through entire study and still couldn't find the potions store.
"Where are they!" Sala shouted tossing the books from the shelves to find something anything that would heal her wounds before she bled to death.
After searching through the entire study Sala was about to give up hope but there was yet one place she had yet to search and that was his room. Sala wasn't sure where he would have stashed away his potions but she was determined to tear it inside out if it meant she could live a little longer. And tear apart his room she did as she flipped his bed tore open his dressers spilling his clothes everywhere with complete disregard to every rule that Ferris had put in place. For to Sala his rules no longer mattered to her once he tricked her into eating Sascha all bets were off for her and anything was free game. And just when Sala was about to give up hope she spotted something shinny from under the boards where Ferris bed had been and slowly moved herself to where she saw the shinning object. Using the last bit of her strength smashed the weak boards and revealed a small stash of potions with elvish written on them. Unable to truly read elvish fluently she still understood what meant what and grabbed the nearest one that she figured would heal her and drank it all completely.
Ferris returned later that evening and knew even before he opened the front door that something was wrong none of the lights were on and several of the window appeared to have been broken outward from where his room was. He could already knew he was going to have to teach that useless creature of his a lesson and waste precious time for his potions on it. However, luckily for him he did not have to wait any longer before he could get rid of her and put her to her original purpose for why he had bought her from Danny so many years ago. Small naga hide's are a rare thing to come across and when sold to the right person at a premium price was worth a small fortune. But the reason Ferris had bought Sala was a completely different reason but just as selfish. So as he opened the front door he held his knife at the ready and slowly entered his own house entering a trap of that much he was certain of.
"Beast? Where are you show yourself!" Ferris ordered walking into the house cautiously. Ducking immediately as a jar flew at his head from the room to his left and crashed into the opposite wall giving off an odor of rotten eggs. Causing the elf and his heightened elven senses to cough in disgust at the pungent stink. But Ferris also threw an small knife in the direction of the tossed jar and hear the audible sound of the knife being buried in a wall. Cursing under his breath he went to retrieve the knife and immediately regretted it as the entire contents of a table came hurtling at him table included.
"Son of a!" Ferris shouted dropping down to his chest and rolling away as the table and contents crashed into the wall where he had been and got to a knee to see what had caused the table to go flying at him. Spotting the retreating end of a tail rounding a corner. And with a look of hate Ferris ran after the tail intent on stabbing it with his dagger and pinning it in place so he could find its damnable owner. So intent was he that he didn't even see as Sala put her arm out and cloths lined Ferris dropping him onto his back.
"Hello Ferris missed me?" Sala asked looking down at him before using her tail to coil around him quickly and then toss him at a wall with a renewed sense of loathing at the elf and kept her distance knowing he was an expert at getting close and doing damage to her the scar on her stomach being proof to that.
"You! How dare you strike your master!" Ferris shouted at Sala standing up covered in dust
"You are not my master any more I refuse to call you that Ferris." Sala said standing to her full height to where she barely fit inside the small room any more at her full height. Her hands were balled tightly into fist as she stared down at Ferris her tail at the ready behind her and her fangs out and ready to bite should the need arise and she certainly felt it would by the end of this.
"I defeated you once beast I will do so again!" Ferris shouted and ran at Sala as her eye's went wide and she used her tail and threw a table at Ferris knowing he'd dodge the table but followed after the table with her tail and whipped him in the head with it. Stopping Ferris in his tracks and making him fall to the ground on his side. Sala didn't miss a beat and followed after swinging her fist down as hard as possible and trying to smash his face in only for Ferris to roll away to the side at the last minute. As he rolled up to a ready position he noticed that something was off this was not the same weak rage blinded monster he had fought this morning something was different he just couldn't place it.
"Come on Ferris fight me you coward!" Sala shouted shooting her tail out like a whip again at where Ferris which he had predicted she would do. And just as he had done nineteen years ago stabbed downwards with his hand holding the dagger intending to score a strong hold on her tail and pull her towards him. But instead he missed as her tail rather then continue straight at him as it should have veered right and then came back at him like a hook once it had passed him. Bringing her tail back she surrounded Ferris with it as soon as it touched him Sala coiled her tail tightly around his body.
"So it seems I have you again Ferris and I am presented the same opportunity to kill you." Sala said coming close to him squeezing him tightly as she opened her mouth revealing her four fangs. Coming in close to bite him just like she had this morning yet again just as she was about to bite down Ferris dislocated his other shoulder and tried to slip out. But not before Sala grinned at him and uncoiled her tail rapidly throwing him into a wall. When he hit the wall she rushed up to him coiled her tail around him once more but this time she kept his arms pinned in between her coils.
"Beast release me now! Or so help me I will... ack gek!" Ferris started to shout but stopped short as Sala hissed at him at the start of his yell and bite down hard on his neck. Staying where she was she emptied all four of her venom storage sacks into Ferris's blood stream and she held onto him refusing to believe it would be this easy and waited. Feeling his pulse slow down as her powerful neurotoxin seeped into and spread through out his entire body and respiratory system slowing down his muscles and heart it wouldn't be long until all his body would be unable to respond and he'd die from poisoning. Yet that wasn't enough for Sala the simple fact that Ferris would die by simple poisoning didn't sit with her she wanted more. She wanted him to suffer she wanted him to feel the same pain she had forced onto Sascha and had awoken a formerly unknown and dormant part of her mind. As Sala opened her mouth as wide as could dislocating her jaw she opened it even further and stared down at Ferris as if to say "Any last words?"
"I hope I make you sick bitch." Ferris said coldly knowing he wasn't escaping this one as he stared at Sala with the same venom as if the roles were reversed and he was the one who was standing over her rather then how thing's were now. Sala not wishing to see his face any longer gave one long hiss as she reared her body back opening her mouth wider then she had ever done previously. Suddenly shooting her head forward over Ferris's she bit down hard into him with her fangs. As she slowly opened her mouth she pushed more of Ferris into her mouth using her tail. As more of Ferris would enter her mouth she would bite down into him, she was going to make sure he felt the most pain from this as possible and was doing a good job of it so far as she took in Ferris right shoulder. Opening her mouth more she slowly and painfully took in Ferris left shoulder as tears came to her eye's from the pain as she felt of her jaws stretching so far for the first time. Or maybe it was the fact she was about to triumph over the one person who had belittled her and beaten her and generally tried to break her every since the day she hatched that brought the tears to her eye's.
As Sala slowly moved down Ferris body he would occasionally struggle or move but her neurotoxin was doing its job and kept Ferris from moving to much and reduced his movements to a bear reminder that he was still there. She could feel him moving down through her throat and her chest but rather then stopping at her stomach as she had thought he would. He instead kept going deeper inside her the fact she had eaten him up to his waist and he still continued down deeper surprised her a lot. It wasn't until she got to his thigh's that he finally reached her tail and started entering it which surprised Sala as she had never known that was possible for something as large as Ferris to enter her tail like he was doing right now. Once Ferris waist was past her throat the rest of his body his thighs and legs went surprisingly fast and easy to swallow past and Sala was once again amazed as she finally swallowed the last of Ferris sending him to his final resting place inside her tail as she relocated her jaw with her hands.
"Wow I... I didn't think it was possible to eat another person... sure I wanted him to pay and go through the same thing he put Sascha through but... I didn't think that this would actually work!" Sala said amazed as she looked at her now distended tail and could make out where exactly Ferris was inside her tail. "Now what to... ow!" Sala shouted grasping at her stomach as the stress she had just put on it from eating Ferris must have reopened wounds inside of her and grabbed her stomach in pain. While with one arm she grabbed a potion from the belt she had put together earlier to hold some of the potions she had found in Ferris room. The effects were helpful in healing her though it took a while for the effects to set in fully. There were also a few that Ferris had made that could be thrown at an target for debilitating effects much like the potion that smelled of rotten eggs when smashed open. Yet the smell itself was not the main purpose of the potion only a method of delivery for its real effect as it was supposed also make the target slower and weaker when inhaled.
Grabbing one of the potions she drank it even though it tasted bitter and made her cringe at it's taste she none the less drank all of it and put the container down and tried to move to another less destroyed part of the house.However try as she might she seemed to be stuck in place as if she had a dead weight stuck in her tail. Looking back she couldn't help but smack herself in the forehead at the obvious reason why she couldn't move at her normal pace. Putting a little more effort into moving Sala slowly moved from her spot and went up stairs to what was once Ferris room however once there she stopped at its threshold to his room and looked in. For the life of her she didn't want to enter it as the memories of years past came back to her closing the door to the room Sala turned to the study opening it and went inside. Stopping near one of the many shelves Sala noticed just how much damage she had done to the place as she picked up a book filled with his notes on potion's and alchemy. Closing it she put it back up on the shelf in disgust as yet more memories of Ferris came back to her memories she didn't want anymore, memories she didn't need and had to get rid of as she came to a conclusion to solve her current problem of these painful memories.
Leaving the study she opened the door to what was once Ferris room entering it she pushed her memories to the back of her mind as she went in and began to grab things that were once his and tossed them outside a window and leaving them on the street where ever it landed just like so much trash and useless waste. It took her several throws but she eventually had the entire room emptied of everything that even remotly smelled of Ferris. Closing the door on the now empty room Sala smiled at the fact she had gotten rid of yet another reminder of Ferris and what he had done and went back down stairs.
Looking over the damage caused by her and Ferris over the course of the last two days it was an impressive fact that there were any walls left standing what with the holes and indentations in them. Continuing her look through she noticed that many of the many potions that had been in the making and their ingredients were now spilled everywhere on the floor and walls wincing at the wasted time put into making what would have been spectacular potions when they were finished. All Sala could really do to salvage anything from them were the few notes that Ferris had already wrote and hold onto them continuing her sweep of the bottom floor. By the end of her short look through all of the entire lower level of the house Sala was convinced that there was nothing salvage able from the mess other then a few ingredients a couple of notes and some empty container's.
Whatever mess was made would have to be taken care of the next day there certainly was no rush to take care of it then after all she was free to do as she pleased a fact that still had yet to implant itself in her head. Yet after she had put the notes away in the study and the remaining ingredients and containers on a some what partially standing table Sala returned to her small spot by the window and coiled her tail around her body. Very much like she would have done with Ferris around yet rather then bunching herself up she instead let herself spread out as far as she dared and rested her head comfortably against a part of her tail which she had propped up against the wall under her window.
Closing her eye's slowly Sala for the first time went to sleep without having to worry about ever being punished again never having to feel degraded never having to worry about being yelled at. The mess that was the entire lower part of the house could wait and the study could wait for her to reorganize it everything could now wait on her to get to it when she felt like it. Not when someone else felt like it the idea gave her a warm feeling as she slowly drifted to sleep to dream of what her future may hold for her and the many possibilities.
Last edited by walkingbyself on Mon Aug 15, 2011 4:26 pm; edited 2 times in total | |
| | | | MrNobody13
Great warrior
Posts : 479
Join date : 2010-10-10
Age : 33
Location : Running from something
| | Subject: Re: Pet Store Horror's Sat Aug 06, 2011 9:20 am | |
| Well, I must say this story was, on a whole, quite something. The characters were interesting and mostly alright. I did have a bit of an issue with Ferris being the one-dimensional villain who is nothing but evil with no redeeming qualities, but that's not a terrible overstep. The other characters were done fairly well, particularly Sala and Sascha, their relationship.
You definitely want to work on your spelling, although your grammar seems fine. There were numerous errors in the story, to the point of being a tad distracting, at least for me. "Through" being replaced by "threw" and "thru" occurred a great deal, and make sure to use the proper "to", "too" or "two".
The paragraph and formatting was good, prose decent, and overall the characters were believable (except Ferris, but that's forgivable), and both the final fight and the initial scene with the mother trying to protect her egg were nicely portrayed.
Other than those issues, well done. | |
| | | | walkingbyself
Great warrior
Posts : 453
Join date : 2011-02-15
Age : 35
Location : United States
| | Subject: Re: Pet Store Horror's Mon Aug 08, 2011 7:05 am | |
| Thanks for the feed back I always have trouble on deciding which to/ too should be placed where. And for the through well yes I know I need work on that as well... I guess I kinda took the cheap easy way out on that I'm looking threw and fixing those two errors now. As for Ferris I really wanted him to leave an impression on her that would carry over for many years past his death and I might have been a tad to lazy in giving him any actual redeeming qualities but also it might also be because I just don't like elves at all and wanted him to be that one-dimensional. And the story is far from over yet I still have a fifth chapter that I'm trying to get shoot full of holes by amroq whose helped me out thus far on improving the quality of each chapter. Plus I'm working on the sixth chapter right now, I would throw the fifth up as is now but I'd like to get it looked over first. | |
| | | | walkingbyself
Great warrior
Posts : 453
Join date : 2011-02-15
Age : 35
Location : United States
| | Subject: Re: Pet Store Horror's Mon Aug 08, 2011 11:27 am | |
| Alright fixed the issue of threw and through only thing really to fix is which to/ too should be used where. | |
| | | | walkingbyself
Great warrior
Posts : 453
Join date : 2011-02-15
Age : 35
Location : United States
| | Subject: Re: Pet Store Horror's Mon Aug 15, 2011 2:41 pm | |
| Happy Twentieth Birthday - Spoiler:
It had been a solid three months since Salafeta had overcome her old master Ferris. In that time she had managed too learn a lot about what Ferris had been studying and quite frankly what she had learned she didn't like one bit. The elf had been studying the differences between giant nagas that were commonly known through out Negav and most of Felarya, as well as that of small nagas of which Salafeta belonged to. Apparently he had been around for almost an entire century and probably would have managed to live a full hundred years if Sala hadn't defeated him. She had finally come to terms with the fact she had eaten him. But she had actually enjoyed that satisfied feeling of being so full, but she also hated being forced to move so slowy by his added weight. Not to mention that she had also felt far more lethargic the following week after she ate, him but she had decided too make the best of it and either slept most of those days in the enclosed area that she and Sascha used to play in or tried to keep busy, cleaning up the mess left behind from her and Ferris' fight. Sure the entire bottom floor of the house was still a wreck but the majority of the mess was gone and the destroyed potions that he had been working on that were scattered through out the first floor were all cleaned. the only thing left were the dents and holes in the walls, which Sala didn't pay much care too fix and left them as they were and instead she devoted her time to studying Ferris' notes on Alchemy and Potions. The irony was not lost upon her when she was able too replicate most of his potions on the first try with the few supplies left lying around the house that hadn't been destroyed.
"Besides being uncannily stealthy despite their size giant nagas are perhaps the most effective hunters too be found in Felarya, next to Dryads who use their skill's in Illusion to appear to the rest of the world as nothing more than tree's revealing themselves only to eat or when near those they trust. The small nagas though far different in comparison to their giant cousins are just as effective as the giant ones. However, due to their size and the fact that some of their prey is their exact size, most if not all small nagas have some form of toxin or venom which they use on their prey. So far all observed evidence's indicat that this "Poisonous Bite" by the small nagas is cure able with a simple anti-venom. observing a small naga using this ability is quite rare as they are as cautious in choosing their prey that is their same size as the giant ones. When they consume a meal as large as themselves the nagas speed is significantly reduced due to the added weight of its meal as well as the fact that they tend to become more sluggish. They become far more tired and will often sleep for prolonged periods."
Sala never liked reading through his notes on nagas like herself although they were helpful to her as she had never once hunted or had attempted to try and hunt before, nor had she lived a single day of her life out in the jungle. They also gave her but the smallest glimpse of the world and life she could have lived in if not for him. True he might have spared her an early death like so many others of her kind who were born in the jungle, but he had also deprived her of many of the much needed skills and thoughts she would have had if she had been born in the jungle. It wasnt uncommon that she would play around with the idea of leaving Negav to see if she could in fact survive on her own or end up as some things or some one's meal. But that was just an idea, and she never played around with it for long. Instead she had decided to try and hone the few skills she had to try, and become proficient in the ones she didn't or was severely lacking in. She hunted tinies like neera's and tom thumbs, but whereas she would eat the neera's she could catch she let go of the tom thumbs. So much was she reminded of what she did to her friend that when she caught a tom thumb she'd let it go and immediately rush back to her home and cry again. Regardless she was learning what she had been missing for years if a little sloppily at first, having more then once almost having herself revealed to all of Negav. She had decided to make it a point that if she ever decided to hunt again she would do so at night. It was also a good idea on her part to decide to hunt at night as she also in inadvertently learned of another ability of nagas that Ferris could have never known about unless he had been a naga. Sala had learned that by blinking her eye's in a certain manner she would lower a special film over her eye's that would allow her to use a sort of heat vision allowing her to see things better at night in colors ranging from blue to red to white depending on how hot the object was.
But on this night in Negav, when all were supposed to be asleep, was a rather special night for Sala as she had decided that she had had enough preparatory training in hunting neera's and tom thumbs before hand that she could try and catch a same sized prey. Ruling out human's entirely as possible candidate's for her to testing herself on, she also just barely decided against going after the cat like neko's although if her attempt at catching her intended prey didn't go as intended she'd probably switch to them. After ruling those two out Sala had made her mind focus entirely on hunting elves for no other reason than her master was one and every last one of those she had observed displayed the same behaviors as him. Was she being prejudice or stereo typing all elves to be just like Ferris was? Probably but she didn't care for as far as she was concerned they were all the same as Ferris and would have done the same thing as he would have if they had the same opportunity.
So as Sala decided that tonight would finally be the night to test herself. She had focused herself on hunting elves primarily and this was why she now followed behind one of them keeping close and within the shadow's so she could strike at a moments notice and claim her victory. She held back until she thought she had the perfect opportunity and followed the elf, watching what appered to be a five foot tall female elf comparing her size to the buildings around. She apeared to be dressed in some sort of dress the lack of lighting made it imposible to tell its color. Her hair was tied in a bun on the back of her head with something that could barely be made out as a flower. She waited for her to slip up just once and she would spring forth at her, biteing her and injecting her poison into her neck. Then she would quietly slip away to her house to enjoy her reward.
"Okay Sala... here's your chance, you've been following this elf for the last two hours... so far nothing seems to be out of the ordinary and going just as you had planned it. Just a little longer and a few feet closer and you will have the perfect opportunity to strike out and catch the elf!" Sala thought to herself with glee, perhaps letting the fact that so far everything had gone according to plan go to her head a little to much. Watching the elf she brought herself closer to her intended target, keeping quietly to the dark as the elf walked on unknowingly into her trap. Once she had, Sala grinned widely to herself, counting down to when she would strike.
"There! She's there! Okay Sala no time for mistakes! Just count to three and strike out, coil around, bite down and make sure the elf doesn't scream and everything will have gone perfectly! Now one... two... three!" Sala counted down in her head and in the blink of an eye launched herself forward at the elf, mouth open, fangs ready and tail ready to coil around the elf the second she collided with it.
However as luck would have it the elf managed to get a look at Sala and let out a short but high pitched shriek of terror before Sala trapped her with her tail and bit down into her neck to silence her. But the damage had already been done and the nearby law enforcement was already on its way as Sala could already hear them rushing to her location thanks to the elf's scream. Unable to stay there any longer, Sala retreated from her spot but attempted to bring the elf with her, deciding that taking the elf with her and not get caught was just barely less risky then to leave her there and risk some one having anti-venom to restore the elf, revealing Sala's existence.
"Gah! Damn it! Why did she have to turn at the last second and scream! And why does she have to be so damn heavy!" Sala complained, hauling herself back up into the roofs, keeping her tail coiled around the female elf. Who was about as limp as a person could be, not moving a muscle and barely breathing thanks to Sala's venom which was now coursing through this woman's body. Sala hadn't put nearly as much venom into this woman as she had Ferris so she didn't have to worry about her dying while Sala made her way back home.
But she did have to be careful and expedient as she wasn't sure if the amount she had given her would keep her out for long or if she would wake up screaming halfway home. And careful and expedient were two things that Sala couldn't seem to make meet as she had been able to only just barely get both herself and the unconscious elf onto the roof tops when the law enforcement officers showed up looking for the source of the scream. And when Sala saw their numbers her stomach seemed to have hit rock bottom. They appeared to be out in force tonight as the building she was on was passed by no fewer then ten officers with one of them shouting out orders to spread out and search everywhere and to keep an eye out for some one who Sala could only guess was her elf.
"Damn it! This is so not good, first she yells, alerting them and now here they are looking for her?! Why oh why did you have to be some one important!" Sala bemoaned, looking back at her catch with a bit of anger and regret.
Not spending long to look over the elf, Sala immediately began to retrace her steps back to her house, but of course that would have been to easy for her oh no. Where as Sala had an easy time of following the elf she found her return trip to be far harder what with the law enforcement out and looking for her elf, and the fact she now had to move both herself and the elf carefully and quietly enough that the officers wouldn't find her. A task far easier said then done as Sala quickly learned as she waited many times for the perfect opportunity to break from one building to another, attempting to maintain her height advantage atop the buildings. Every so often she was forced to use the streets, a very risky proposition for Sala, as she would have to lower herself and the elf quietly then, make a mad dash across the street. Sala waited for the next opportunity to get up a building. The proposition had been so much easier on her way out while following the elf, and not carrying the added weight of her prey.
Eventually Sala managed to make it to within a block from her house, so far without anything more then tiring herself out with carrying the elf and avoiding the officers. And she had made it this far just in time, too, as Sala could just barely make out in the distance light from the slowly rising sun. Sala wouldn't have much longer until the sun had risen and her cover would be completely blown as anyone with two eye's would be able to spot her out amongst the buildings and alley way's. However, Sala was determined to make it that last block back to her house successfully and without having to encounter the officers. Making one last mad dash across the street, Sala just barely managed to make it into an alley and up the building before the officer who had caught glimpse of the end of her tail came rushing into the alley behind her.
"Halt! Stay right where you... Are?" the officer shouted, looking through the alley, confused. He could have sworn he saw something come down into this alley so where could it have gone? As the officer stood there looking up and down the alley, Sala swore he had spotted her. She stayed completely still as his eye's lingered on the spot she hid at ever so briefly. Although he only stared at her spot for only a few seconds, it felt like hours to Sala. "Huh... mind must be playing tricks on me... I need to get some sleep, these late night watch's are really getting to me." The officer said as he turned around and left the alley turning right as he left.
Once the officer was gone Sala exhaled with a heavy sigh and began to move once more, swearing if she never had to imitate another one of those damnable signs of a naked woman it would be to soon, as she climbed the rest of the way up the building, revealed a sign of a naga in a very suggestive pose with her tail around a pole and her hand reaching out to a man, the letter's underneath reading "The Twisted Naga Gentleman's Club". As Sala made her way across the roof she could see her house and began to feel a sense of elation and relief at knowing her goal was so close. It wouldn't be that much further from her but as fate would have it she faced one last obstacle. She had to cross one more street before she could reach her house and get to one of the second floor windows. They were the only way in or out of the house as she had barricaded the front door shut and closed and locked all the lower window's. Her house was a safe house or at least she thought it was, but in the street before her was a single officer he looked different then the one's she had seen thus far yet he had the same uniform as them yet something about him struck Sala as peculiar. Everything about him seemed normal yet she just couldn't get rid of the feeling he already knew she was there though he just didn't know where she was. Her getting away from him undetected was about a likely a thing as her having been raised by a kind loving Ferris as apposed to the evil and hateful Ferris that had raised her.
"Well Sala... it looks like your numbers come up on this one... your going to have to do something this time. Sneaking by with the elf is simply out of the question as you're too slow and admittedly louder then you should be when moving her. So only option's are to abandon her and allow for the chance that she'll wake and warn the law enforcement about you. That will not be a pretty picture when they learn a naga is in the city. Or put the elf down, go down there, and risk him alerting the rest of the entire law enforcement to kick your figurative ass... or place the elf down and try to sneak close enough to him that you can simply give him a dose of poison and leave him to be found... hmm yeah lets go with that less chances of being caught..." Sala decided, making up her mind to sneak close to the officer and try to put him out with her poison while leaving her elf right where she was. It was a plan with a lot to risk and no room for error but with great rewards for her if she managed to pull it off successfully.
Setting the elf down carefully and making sure to leave her in a spot she could easily get to her without the elf being spotted. Sala immediately went about sneaking around behind and close to the man, who remained her only obstacle to her freedom. Yet as she moved she could feel his gaze tracking her every motion without moving a single muscle. It was very disconcerting for her because she did everything she could to keep her self hidden while she tried to sneak up behind the man. Yet she somehow managed to get within striking distance of the man and was about to lash out and bite him, leaving him there as temporarily knocked out when he said something to her that made her pause in her tracks.
"I know your back there naga. Don't be surprised. I've been hunting your kind for year's so a juvenile naga who thinks to out smart me by sneaking around behind to strike me down with her poisonous bite is nothing new to me. Although I have to say I am surprised that you managed to make it this far with that elf considering he never taught you the right proper basics of hunting and maintaining stealth while hunting, two things you would have only learned on your own in the jungle. Yet you learned it well enough to make it this far. Now I have an offer for you naga. I'll let you go this time if you let me take back that elf you had taken." the officer spoke to Sala, not even moving a muscle. Yet he had somehow knew exactly where she was! And even more he knew about Ferris and how he had raised her! Who was the man to know so much about her without her even meeting him? She wanted to know, yet her instincts told her not to speak and stare at the back of the man's head as if he had eye's there, watching her.
"So what do you say? I let you go this once if you give me the elf that you left up there on that building eh? Or do I have to call in the rest of my department to take you in for kidnapping and attempted homicide of a respected elf who believe it or not was fighting for better treatment of your kind, as obscene as it sounds. As well as the murder of a known researcher in the field of alchemy? More then enough charges against you to have you skinned and hanged for. So is letting this one elf go really starting to sound so bad to you now?" the man told her. She could have sworn she saw the grin on his face so with a sigh she retreated back from the man. She kept her eye's on him for if he did reveal her she wanted to make sure she injected him with so much poison he would never wake up from it.
"Good choice naga... you know I just remembered something, it's been about twenty years since I last saw you... ah but I've gone and said to much and wasted to much time here talking." The man said as he walked away from Sala to the building she had left the elven woman at. She watched him climb atop the building and find the woman right where she left her, mostly unharmed with the small exception of where Sala had bitten her and injected her poison into her. Once the man had the elf in hand, Sala had to resist the urge to give out a hiss and attack him. Yet a deal was a deal, he kept up his side and she was rather curious as to how he knew so much and how he had seen her twenty years ago.
"Alright, a deal's a deal, naga. I have the elf and your free to go. But I'll warn you now if I catch a single mention that you are kidnapping people you wont know what hit you." the man warned her, staring directly at her again "Oh and one more thing. Leave your front door open tomorrow. I'd imagine you have a few question's you'd like answered and even if you think you don’t care I'm sure you'd like to know something about your mother." the man said with a hint of sadness before walking away and out of sight.
Once he was gone Sala exhaled heavily at what her night had been like. As she lowered herself back down she almost didn't notice the small box that was left in a corner with a note attached to it.
"In the off chance I'm not imagining things and you really are the naga that hatched from the egg that I gave Ferris twenty years ago, then I would like to say I am sorry for everything he's done to you and wish you a happy twentieth birthday.
-Happy Birthday from Danny
P.S. Don't open the box in the street or tell anyone what's inside. It's a present meant solely for you and if anyone learns that I gave it and its contents to you. I will be in as much trouble as you for whatever you do with them."
Now Sala was curious. Who was that man? And most importantly what was in that box? Sala wondered as she lifted it and gave it a slight shake, hearing something moving around inside it as well as what might have been a squeak. Sala's mood immediately lifted at the thought of what might be inside the box. She took both it and the letter into her house. Closing the window behind her, Sala quickly and quietly slithered into what was once Ferris' room -now her's. She opened the box quietly and carefully but as she saw the sight inside she quickly gave a small gasp in surprise and instantly had a smile on her face from ear to ear. Whoever Danny was or whatever he knew about her, he did know one thing about her taste's. She thanked him quietly, wherever he was, as she licked her lips and reached a hand slowly into the box to grab the first of twenty delightfully tasty yet cute and innocent looking neeras.
| |
| | | | walkingbyself
Great warrior
Posts : 453
Join date : 2011-02-15
Age : 35
Location : United States
| | Subject: Re: Pet Store Horror's Thu Sep 08, 2011 3:43 am | |
| The Destination - Spoiler:
It was raining out and had been for the last several weeks. The ground was wet and the mud clung to anything that passed threw it including the scales of a certain naga who was out and running. Running to escape and avoid a fate everything faced out in the jungles of Felarya, yet for her all hope was not lost as she spiraled up a tree just tall enough to get herself high up off the ground and out of the mud that was now caked onto her. Stopping for a moment and no longer she looked behind her to see if the thing that had been following her. Checking to see if it was still keeping pace with her before using her long tail to coil around a branch of the tree she was on so she could move to the next one over then uncoil from her tree just to coil onto the next and repeated the process several times before finding a river that was feed by a small ten foot water fall. Leaping out from her tree into the water beneath the fall she stayed under the water holding her breath and followed the river keeping with the flowing water for as far as she dared. Believing she had gone far enough Sala coiled her tail behind her launched herself up and out of the water onto the nearest tree climbing all the way to its top where she paused to find her pursuer. Not seeing any sign of movement amongst the tree's or hearing it's tell tale sign of approach Sala gave a sigh of relief she had lost it!
"Your dead naga! You let your guard down believing you were safe and thus were surprised by the dryad who you had thought to be a tree that in turn ate you!" shouted the little head phone in her ear. The voice of the person on the other side was the human officer Danny who was somewhere in this small jungle or rather a park inside the middle tier of Negav.
"What the hell! You said nothing about dryads in this run threw that’s cheating! I won this round and beat the time you had set out for me! You just don’t want to admit I am good enough to...!" Sala started to shout back into her tiny mic he had given her so they could communicate.
"Don’t argue with me! I don’t have to tell you anything about what you are going to face in these simulations. Out there in the real jungle you won’t know what is out there waiting for you to slip up and turn you into a nice midnight snack or an appetizer before their main course of other hapless fools who thought they to were perfectly safe! Now come back to the clearing and we'll start again understood?" Danny ordered a hint of irritation could be heard in his voice as he repeated himself to her once again about the dangers of assuming she was safe in a world that showed little mercy for mistakes.
"Fine I'm on my way back now." Sala replied, her tail coiling perhaps a bit more tightly then she had intended around a branch and splintered the thing into small and large pieces. Unfortunately for her that was the one she had most of her weight on, and that brief moment of weightlessness that suddenly filled her stomach before she fell the thirty or so feet to the ground, was an awkward feeling at best. The short and rapid fall back to the ground was painful to say the least as her human half somehow managed to hit every single branch on the way back down before she managed to coil herself around the trunk of the tree. Managing to stop from landing on her head inches from the ground she still none the less hit the back of her head against the tree which both surprised her and knocked her out. Her tail loosening its near death grip hold on to the tree fell off and piled on top of her in one large pile.
Over the last several weeks Danny had been training Sala in the basics of what he knew about nagas in general. Although she suspected he knew more about nagas then he told her about, she was in no hurry to learn everything in one go. Even she had to admit to herself that even if he had told her everything, she doubted she would have remembered it. However Danny did share with her all he knew about Ferris or at least the parts that Ferris had shared with him, including information that Danny had gathered on his own. From what Danny told her about Ferris' life he had previously been apart of a community of elves, that lived out in the Felaryian jungle well outside the range of the Isolon Eye. Where exactly was impossible to tell any more as it had been destroyed by a giant naga that had been nicknamed the "Red Terror" due to her scale color and the terror she would instill in those she hunted. However, before the naga destroyed the village of elves Ferris had been a father to a daughter and wife. Only to have both his family friends and everything else taken away when the naga attacked the village and ate almost everyone losing his wife to the giant naga and his daughter to the smaller scavenging predators that followed after the larger predator left. Which lead to their first meeting, Danny and a small group of young adventurer's were on their first trip outside Negav found him and the ruins of his village or what was left of it. And brought him back to Negav for some healing and care, it would be several years before Danny would meet Ferris again. But when they did they were nearly inseparable as a team with the rest of Danny's original group of adventurer's and some newer adventurer's. Mainly exploring the area inside the Isolon Eye's range they also went outside it several times for profitable excursions that only rarely cost them a member of their group to the dangers of the jungle. But after several years of risking his life on many profitable and unprofitable ventures Danny had enough and went his own way and would only ever see Ferris or their group occasionally.
"Come on naga wake up you've been asleep long enough." Danny said waking Sala up having uncoiled most of her tail and dumped some water on her face.
"Ah! What the hell was that for?" Sala shouted jerking awake and moving her body so that she wasn’t lying down anymore.
"About time you woke up, it's almost night time and the end of this training session come on let’s get you back home it has been a long week I think you could use some proper rest." Danny said walking away from Sala heading back to the clearing and the small camp they had made to gather their things
"Finally I thought you had intended to keep me trapped in this place forever. So what’s happened that made you change your mind about me staying out here in this park?" Sala asked keeping pace with Danny easily
"Nothing's happened yet but I figured you would want some time to gather your things together just in case you needed to get out of Negav on short notice. You may not have heard anything about what's happening just yet but a lot of the force has been mobilized to track down a certain naga which they believe to be an off worlder who is an elvin murderer. And some of the elvin district is in an up roar about it as most of the dead or missing have been elf's so far and nobody or group has claimed responsibility for the deaths or kidnapping's. So your time left here in Negav is quite limited as an Investigator from the ISD has also been dispatched to aid in the search of the murderer. And this guy is no push over he's gone through every scene so far with far better efficiency then any other person in the force and it's only a matter of time before he starts to look over your elf's case and trace's it back to you." Danny said walking into a clearing that had only a sleeping roll a fire pit and a few other items spread across the clearing
"Wait so you mean to tell me that they’re going to blame all that on me when they don’t even know who is actually responsible?!" Sala said angrily using her tail to grab a few items she had brought and left in a tree during her training. They were mostly a few notes of paper and sample's of the plants and other things found within the park hopping to use them to for her alchemical studies and potions making.
Sure Ferris had gone into some of the more advanced and exotic plant types and made most of his potions out of speculation and idea's and uses he had needed to cover. But Sala was determined to make her own that were just as effective as his but using less exotic and easier to find ingredients then he had used, figuring that if she wanted to separate herself from him and his studies entirely she would have to find her own way to achieve the same results he had.
"That's the way it seems to be so far, and the fact your a naga will not help your case any if he does find you before I can get you out of here. Come on the exit to the park is this way and keep to the shadows when possible and keep practicing your skills at keeping quiet and moving with stealth. Just because your not actively going to be practicing tonight doesn't mean you get to take it easy." Danny instructed her, and made his own path through the trees and bush's having gone off the path and deeper into the man made forest then most for the sole purpose of helping to train Sala.
Doing as Danny had told her to Sala climbed up the nearest tree and kept pace with him, it didn’t take long to reach the exit but when they did the sun was gone and the majority of the people were gone from the streets with only a few people out and around. And thanks to Danny being a member of the police it gave him a reason to be leaving the park at such a late hour and be out on the street's claiming to be on patrol to anyone that asked. While he walked the street's Sala kept to the roof tops and shadow's much like she did when she had hunted that elf. But unlike that time she wasn’t hunting anyone but just followed after Danny. Her house was a good several blocks away from park and would take about an hour and a half to reach it on foot, looking over the city as she made her way home Sala got a chance to appreciate Negav or as much of it as she could considering much of the Negavian skyline was about as tall or taller than most of the giant preds in Felarya. Down on the streets Danny kept close to the buildings keeping an eye out for both Sala and any other person still out, having been assigned to much of this section of Negav with several other officers Danny knew a few of the people by name.
"Sala don’t answer back but I'm being followed stay to the shadow's and get home safely, I'll catch up to you later no need to act like a hero I can fend for myself." Danny warned speaking threw his mic and into her head set which she still had in her ear.
Looking down at Danny and behind him some Sala switched to her thermal vision and saw exactly what he was talking about; a small group of about five figures were following behind him. Keeping their distance at the moment but were undoubtedly following him, having grappled with Danny many time's already in the park she felt sorry for his follower's if they did try to attack him. Taking his advice Sala went ahead leaving Danny behind knowing that even if something were to happen to him he would have found some way to get out of being in trouble. The two story house that was Sala's home hadn’t changed much since she had left it to go with Danny to the park to train and learn more about how to survive out in the jungle. Getting within sight of her home Sala breathed a sigh of relief at finally being home and gave a quick switch to her heat vision to entertain what Danny had been trying to teach her about being cautious about anything that seemed safe. And unsurprisingly everything was exactly as it should be no one hiding in the shadows like she was now. Making her way across the street quickly Sala made her way inside the house quickly and silently, once inside Sala relaxed safe at last inside her own home and went directly to her own room and passed out tiredly into her coiled tail.
"Wake up Sala! I need to get you out of here now!" Danny shouted waking Sala up again. His face was distraught and he had several bruises and his normally decent uniform was now torn and ragged. "The force is on its way here now and will be here in a matter of minutes." Danny warned as Sala woke rapidly
"What! But how did they figure out..." Sala protested uncoiling and hurrying to grab her things.
"There is no time to explain! Grab the things I instructed you to keep ready and lets..." Danny paused as a loud bang could be heard coming from down stairs "Damn their already here. Listen Sala get out of here head directly to the park as fast and as discreetly as possible! Once there head directly to the falls there is a tree about fifteen feet tall shout 'dryad', a friend of mine will show you the rest of the way out understood?!" Danny said grabbing Sala's shoulders forcing her to look him in the eyes.
"Yes I understand... but what about the potions the..." Sala protested
"No time! Now move damn you! Use your tunnel and escape it's more then likely the only thing you have left to get out from here now that you home is surrounded. Now get moving naga!" Danny said pushing her towards the stairs to get her moving towards her tunnel.
Going down the stairs Sala went to her tunnel entrance having rarely used it after what Ferris did to her, and she pretty much stopped using it all together once Danny started to help train her. Having put a table over it just to put that part of her past away believing she would not have to use it since Danny would act as her guide threw the city keeping an eye out for anyone that might see her, making her travel threw the city far easier and quicker then when she had alone. Moving aside the covering she had put over it she looked to Danny and saw him bracing more objects against the door as the windows were all closed and blacked out before hand. Knowing this may well be her last time seeing Danny wanted to say something yet couldn’t think of anything to say but smiled thankfully that she had known him for the short time she had. Disappearing into the tunnel and covering it back up from inside made her way through her tunnel finding it to be a lot smaller now then the last time she had been through it. Making the short but tight trip through the tunnel Sala climbed out of the other end of the tunnel and left it and her home behind forever as she went to the closest building. Reaching up quickly Sala grabbed onto the building and quickly hauled the herself the rest of the way out and up and ran as fast as she could back towards the park, sparing only a moment to look behind her and witnessed as what had to be numerous hover craft converging on what had been her home. Each one bore the symbol of the Negavian police force's special tactics and reconnaissance squads. Feeling a pang of regret at what Danny’s' future held in store for him she remembered that he gave her this one chance to escape and she would take it no heroics no stupid stunts just run and get away as fast as possible.
The entire journey between her home and the park was an adventure in its own that would possibly be worthy of its own epically heroic retelling, but as Sala neared the park the only thing she cared about was getting away from Negav as fast as possible. Crossing the last street Sala entered the park exactly as Danny said and went back to the water fall she had only just leapt into only a few hours ago. The park itself was one of the larger ones within Negav's middle tier, covering an area of approximately one square mile filled with tree's and several of the nonhuman eating types of creatures. There were paths that lead threw the entire park giving visitors a look at some of Felarya's unique wildlife in a controlled environment.
By the time Sala reached the lake the sun itself was just showing itself and Sala thought back to Danny and what had happened to him. Clearing her head she looked for the tree Danny had mentioned and couldn’t see it until she noticed a slight movement from the area above the falls. Looking up she saw a tree that looked like it might have meet Danny's brief description of its height, climbing up Sala slithered over to the tree anxiously and worried of what might happen if she was wrong or if Danny had been mistaken.
“Uhm... *ahem* DRYAD!" Sala shouted expecting some person to appear out of no where. Of course what happened wasn’t to far from what she expected but rather then a human the tree before her actually began to move and shimmered for a moment before its guise went away and a small dryad looked down sleepily at her.
"*Yawn* Hello there naga... you must... you must be the naga father had been speaking of." the dryad yawned again stretching
"Y... you’re a... a..." Sala said confused to see a living dryad inside the walls of Negav
"Yes yes, I am a dryad and before you ask I am only here because one man now long dead figured it would be a great idea to hire an exotic animal catcher and breeder to get a domesticated dryad to use to spy on events in the jungle. Now as for why you are here alone I can only assume my father's plans had been ruined by something or other but I cannot worry about that now I have to do as he asked of me and hope he will be alright." the Domestic Dryad said rather quickly and leaned down to Sala.
"Your father? Wait you mean Danny? He..." Sala tried to talk but was cut off by the dryad covering Sala's mouth and grabbing her and dragging her towards her.
"Coil your tail around me quickly do as I say or we will both be exposed." the dryad whispered into Sala's ear holding onto her tightly. Doing as she was asked Sala coiled her tail around the dryad and watched as no later than five minutes a small group of human officers and one elf that was shorter then the others came rushing to the water fall Sala had climbed up over. Panicking at finally being found Sala tightened her tail fearing she would finally be found out, yet as the group climbed up the small water fall and looked directly at her it was as if they couldn't see her at all. Looking up to the dryad's face with confusion it finally hit her the dryad was using some sort of illusion magic to keep them both hidden while the officers snooped around for several minutes and then left the way they had come. It wasn’t until several minutes later that the dryad finally released Sala and breathed a sigh of relief before looking at Sala closely.
"Did you just use..." Sala started uncoiling her tail from the dryad
"Magic? Yes, I am an Illusionist of sorts but I can only hide myself from others sight as well as whoever I have in extremely close proximity like what we just did but I can only do that for a short amount of time. Now we need to get you out of here and fast before they come back. Behind the water fall is an old door to an old underground network of tunnels that lead all throughout Negav, but unlike the other tunnels this one is unique and has a line of luminescent vines leading threw the tunnels and outside Negav's walls. However, it has been years since father went through and cleared the tunnels so you'll have to be careful. But if you keep to the illuminated path you'll find yourself out of there in no time." the dryad explained to Sala the method for her escape which as overly simplified as it sounded gave Sala no small amount of comfort as she would have to be relying on something that as the dryad had said hadn’t been used in the last several years.
"Wait so all this and all I have to deal with is a tunnel that might lead me out of the city?" Sala asked more than a little skeptical of this plan
"Look you don’t have to do this you can just turn around right now and go back to where ever you came from and get caught and let the people of Negav deal with a naga which from all I have heard from the humans here they don’t like your kind very much. Or you can do as I said and have a chance to escape and have a real life of your own outside these walls and find out if you do in fact have what it takes to live out in the jungle on your own. Either option has its risks but if you stay here you are guaranteed to be caught and treated harshly and never see the outside ever again, while the one I gave you you run the risk of something eating you in the end sure, but you also have the higher chance of making a life you never would have had. Now hurry up and choose! They are coming back!" the dryad warned looking in the direction the officers had gone.
"Fine I'll take your option... but what is your name?" Sala asked heading back to the falls
"My name is Luna now go! I'll hold the water back long enough for you to get through the door but then you’re on your own." Luna said lying down in the river beside her directing it off its normal path onto a new one "Now run! Take this chance and run!" Luna urged.
With that Sala nodded and dived down into the water below and turned around and saw the door Luna had told her about, getting out of the water and slithering to it Sala tried to open it but felt resistance from its old rusted hinges. Trying several times to open it Sala finally decided the only way she would get through was by brute force and using her tail slammed it against the door hard. After one hit the door gave way and clattered to the ground with a loud crash, realizing what she had just done Sala hurried down through the now open tunnel and fled as the water resumed its natural flow no sooner than the last of her tail entered the tunnel. The tunnel that Sala was now traveling through was much to Sala's surprise lighted by vines that glowed light blue. It wasn’t long until Sala found out that when Luna had said it had been years since Danny had last used these tunnels she had actually meant several decades. As in front of her was a ledge that was about twenty feet up and the vine had grown up along the wall up to the ledge and to another part of the tunnel. Of course there was some water pouring down from the ledge above down to where she was and into back into a small stream of water that flowed threw a grate to somewhere else.
“Well then looks like someone forgot to turn off the faucet.” Sala said quietly just to break the silence as she looked for a way to get up. Spotting a ladder propped up to the ledge above Sala moved towards it and tested it out to see just how sturdy it was. The first few steps were sturdy or as sturdy wooden ladder could be under the current conditions, yet as she came about half way up the ladder the steps gave out and she came crashing down as her snake tail crushed the steps beneath it leaving her down on the bottom again without a way up.
“Ow, alright note to self old wooden objects and heavy weight objects do not mix.” Sala noted picking herself up rubbing her back having landed on top of her tail back first. Taking a second look at her current dilemma trying to figure a way up and out. Sala smiled to herself coming up with a simple solution that she should have thought of in the first place. Getting closer to the ledge Sala began to push herself up by using her tail, which luckily for her was about four times her average height and Sala was about the same height as most people so she could easily reach the ledge with it. Once up on the ledge she began the more arduous part of getting her tail up, after all something so long would undoubtedly be heavy. Without much to work Sala began to pull her tail up, her time spent climbing up and down building inside Negav actually proving to be of another use other than staying out of sight while hunting.
Once she had gotten herself completely up Sala look behind her and smiled to herself thinking to herself ‘Just one more obstacle completed now than onward!’ Sala thought going forth deeper into the tunnel system believing that all she would ever have to deal with were ledges like the one she had just passed. But that did not prove to be the case as certainly there were more ledges yet there were other dangers down in those old tunnels, as she would soon find out.
About an hour after getting past the first ledge Sala encountered yet another obstacle and noticed just why there was water flowing through the tunnels, as the next part was the same ledge yet there was no other way to go other then back or right or down into the water which the vine indicated she should go.
“You’ve got to be kidding me! Damn it Danny! Just when was the last time that you were down here!” Sala shouted to the ceiling agitated. The water didn’t look that bad sure it had probably been flooding through possibly miles of tunnels carrying who knew what in it but at a glance in the blue illumination from the vine it didn’t look to bad. Deciding that she would at least try to hold her breath and see how long she could and just how far she would have to swim by following the vine under the water to a place she could reach on the other side. So taking a really breath Sala dived into the water and tried to follow the vine and found that it kept going on and on with no noticeable trace of a way out of the water. Not willing to risk drowning herself Sala doubled back and swam as fast as she could back to where she came from. As Sala breached the surface again she felt her lungs burning from the lack of oxygen and laid there on the tunnel floor gasping for breath for a good five minutes. But after catching her breath Sala looked down to the water and the vine with contempt, here she was having come this far only to have her only way forward that she could tell of obstructed by water!
“Of all the damn luck in the world... alright then plan B it is... follow the path without the vine and see just where it goes.” Sala said going right down the only other path she could take. Along the way the water that Sala had just previously tried swimming in flowed back the way she had come from, giving her a decent sense of how to retrace her steps should she have to. Sala’s way was lighted every now then by what she could only guess was some moss that had bugs some sort of insect flying between the moss and the water so her path wasn’t completely dark. But the distance between each growth of moss and its insect tenders to another was just enough to leave her in complete darkness for several seconds before she came upon another growth.
Sala wasn’t sure how long she had been going down this part of the tunnel when she heard it but when she did the bottom of her stomach went out. As the sound of crumbling rock and the sound of splashing water could be heard clearly from behind her! She had been cut off from the glowing vines path! Rushing back after hearing the sound die down Sala saw just how bad it really was. Lying in the water and on her path was a wall of fallen rocks and stone that had piled up enough to block her path yet still left a small hole up at the top so something small could climb over and through. But the hole was still far to small for her and the rocks looked to be twice the size of her torso!
“No no no!” Sala shouted trying to remove some of the rocks yet made hardly any progress the rocks were simply to big to be moved! “NO!” Sala shouted slamming her tail repeatedly against the rocks in desperation trying to make them move.
And move they did but not in the way she wanted as more rocks started to fall as well noticing her mistake Sala dived back into the water and swam up stream away from the cave in. Once a good distance away from the cave in Sala tried to pull herself back up out of the water yet only managed to get her upper human half out and laid there exhausted and dispirited. Crying to herself softly Sala began to despair that she would never get out of this tunnel system, but after quieting down Sala heard the sound of splashing water. Curiosity getting the better of her and figuring that she didn’t have anything else to lose she might as well go investigate the noise. Following the sound for the next several minutes Sala’s mouth dropped in amazement, right before here was the same stream she had saw earlier in her trip through the tunnel! All that stood between her and freedom was a set of bars and those didn’t even reach that deep into the water! Feeling happier than before Sala dived into the water and below the bars and resurfaced back on the other side, laughing loudly as she spotted the same vine that glowed a light blue Sala followed it all the way back to the ledge.
Once across the ledge and back at the point she was at previously Sala couldn’t help but laugh at herself and her predicament. She didn’t know how nor did she want to know how but apparently that cave in had done her a favor rather then trapping her forever as she had feared, as the water level on this side of the collapse had actually receded. It had receded enough that she could now swim through the tunnel that had previously been completely submerged under water. So with high hopes and spirits Sala once more dived into the water and let it wash away her worries as she swam through the next portion of the tunnel.
After what seemed like an eternity Sala reached the end of the tunnel she was in, as it opened into what looked like a small storage room with boxes stacked on top of each other as well as other items lining the walls. On the opposite side of the room from Sala was a plain ordinary door, but Sala was not alone in that room as sitting upon one of the boxes near the door a person sat there watching her closely. He didn't look like any normal human she had seen this one appeared much like the stray dogs that could be found running around threw the streets of Negav. His ears were laying down at the side of his head and his muzzle came out several inches from his face and his tail remained motionless as he followed her movements threw the storage area. Although she couldn’t make out if he was surprised to see her or not the fact he hadn’t ran out from the room meant he must either have been expecting her to show up there or was down here hiding from something. Deciding that he was down there waiting for something she crossed the remaining distance to him, and asked him where she was.
"Hello uhm... could you tell me just where I am at?" Sala asked despite how stupid she sounded.
"You're in the basement of Tabs Tavern. And I got to say miss you certainly picked one hell'uva time to try and use that there tunnel system. There's a lot of different type's of people down in those tunnels seeing as how it hasn’t been used in ages for anything other than smuggling stuff in and out of Negav. But now most of them have already left seeing as how the police have broaden their search for that murderer who's been kidnapping elves inside Negav and killing them. Rumor has it though they've already found the guy and they're using this search as an excuse to sweep through the city and crack down on known trouble spots and locations." the dog looking man said standing up after getting off the box.
"Oh... then I guess I got lucky then right? So what’s your name?" Sala asked amazed that this person wasn’t panicking or yelling at the sight of her.
"My names Roger miss and you have either the best of luck or the worst of luck. I was told to stay here and wait for you to show up and then destroy the vine's leading to here as well as sealing the tunnel. If you go up stairs there's an associate of mine, a neko with a hole in his right ear he will show you to the room you can stay in until this search thing passes over and our boss gets back." Roger said walking past Sala grabbing a small bag and a box heading the way Sala had come from.
"Hold on you expect me to listen to you and do as you say? This could be just as much a trap as a means to help how do I know you aren’t trying to trick me...?" Sala asked pausing as she was unable to figure out just what his species was having never seen a person like him before, turning around to stare at him in the back ready to use her tail to defend herself should he try anything.
"Hmm well it would seem you’re not an idiot that's good and will make our job easier when the boss gets back." Roger said his tail wagging slowly while his right ear perked up. "To answer your question if this is a trap or not that is up to you to decide, and to what you were going to ask as to what I am. I am what is called an Inu a person that is part dog just like a neko is a person who is part cat now if you'll excuse me miss I need to get to my task." Roger said walking into the tunnel Sala had come out of, while Sala stood there and watched then turned around and stared at the door and pondered on what exactly she should do and whether or not what Roger had said was meant to be helpful or set her up for a trap like she expected.
Figuring that her only two choices were to stay here and find if it really was a trap or not Sala decided to take her chances and went to the door and opened it slowly to get a look inside before she would decide to go in. Past the door looked to be a main room filled with table's chairs and lots of people human neko and a few Inu like Roger as well as a bar with several people sitting at it drinking. Having already made her choice Sala opened the door the rest of the way and figured that the best place to go was a table with no one at it and hope that nobody minded that she was there. As Sala expected even as she opened the door all the way and was bathed in light from the tavern everyone stopped talking and starred at her several gave her stares of disgust and hate before returning to their drinks or conversations. The rest showed barely a minute interest before turning back to what they had been doing as well; amazed that no one had shouted naga or had started panicking like she had expected them to. Not sure of what else to do Sala stood next to the table not sure if the chairs would actually hold her weight or not when a neko with a hole in his right ear that looked as if he had gotten it from a bite rather then a bullet as the right side of his face had some nasty looking scars running across it. Sitting in a chair across from Sala the neko looked her in the eye's starring at her his fur was black and his eye's yellow, after about five minutes the neko shook his head and stood back up and held a paw out to her.
"Good afternoon mam I am Toral I will be your chaperon during your stay here until our boss can return and give us more orders on what to do next, do not fear any harm from anyone here we are all here on neutral ground and violence is not tolerated from anyone. So if you'll please follow me I'll show you to your room I'm sure you are tired and want to sleep after what you've been thru today and yesterday." Toral said shaking her hand after she took his paw and shook it.
"Uhm... sure but before you do can you tell me exactly where this tavern is? Is it still within the walls of Negav? If it's not can I please go outside and see the jungle please? I've always wanted to see the jungle for real rather than just hearing about it in stories from Danny and Ferris’ notes." Sala asked perhaps a little to excitedly
"Tab's Tavern is just outside the main northern gates of Negav so any jungle you'll see is a good distance away across the Motamo River. And I'm sorry but you’re not to leave Tabs Tavern, or at least not yet at any rate me Roger and a few others are here to protect you on orders from our boss." Toral said sighing and shook his head before leading her to a hallway next to the bar. A little disappointed that she couldn’t leave or see the jungle just yet Sala followed after Toral attracting the attention of some of the people in the tavern as she passed by them. But after making it threw the main room Toral led her to a room up on the second floor the room was average sized for a tavern, a bed next to the wall which had a window that looked out to the city of Negav giving a good view of its defensive wall and several of its larger structure’s. There was a single dresser and another open door to a bathroom, Toral stood outside it with the door open for her to enter.
"This shall be your room for your stay here feel free to go ahead and sleep or come back down stairs and grab something to eat and drink. And again don’t leave the tavern." Toral said then began to walk away from Sala going back to the main room.
"Wait aren’t you going to ask me my name at all? And just exactly why can’t I leave now for?" Sala asked holding an arm out to stop Toral from leaving
"It is better if I don’t know your name it is not apart of our job description to get to know our employers’, however if anyone will actually ask you for your name it is our boss. And as for why you cant leave no one is going to stop you, but right now outside that door is a mad house of police activity and they would like nothing more than to catch a naga like you this close to Negav. Now if there is no further question's I will be returning to the main room, feel free to ask anymore question's from my fellow associate Roger he should be back in a few minutes and he's the more talkative of the two of us." Toral said looking at Sala
"Alright... thank you Toral and my name is Salafeta or Sala you may not care to know it but I like to at least introduce myself to others if I am going to be around them a lot." Sala said and let Toral pass and entered her room and closed the door behind her after getting her entire tail the rest of the way inside. Going to the window Sala looked outside at Negav and stared at the city that had been her home for the last twenty years then looking at the bed she highly doubted it would have held her weight if she slept on it. Moving the bed so that the sunlight had an unobstructed path to the floor Sala coiled herself up on the floor and took Toral's advice and closed her eyes and slept.
Waking up to repeated knocks on the door Sala stretched awake and slowly slithered over her tail to the door and opened it yawning. "Hello? Can I help you?" Sala asked opening the door slowly to see who was waking her up.
"Good your awake finally you've been asleep for the last twelve hours." Roger said standing outside her door the light in the hall way showed that his fur was black and eye's were gold in color and his shaggy tail was moving slowly "Come I'll introduce you to the rest of our group." Roger said opening the door the rest of the way for her to come out.
"Alright then. So how many of you are there?" Sala asked following after Roger as he walked back to the stairs with her beside him
"There are fifteen of us including me and Toral and our boss Remy a human. Remy got this job from an old contact of his who had been on the inside for several years and had worked with him on several escort jobs before" Roger said as they left the stairs and entered the main room many of the people that had been there previously were still there and were more then likely the others Roger had told Sala about. Toral was at the bar keeping an eye on Sala and some of the guest inside the tavern. Leading Sala to the bar Roger ordered Sala a local drink of citriose and a few other fruits.
"So what exactly is this job Remy got from his friend? I know that part of it is to keep me safe during my stay here... but what else is your job? It can’t be just to protect me that wouldn’t make sense! And who the heck is your boss's friend anyways? I'd like to know just who he is, and how the hell he knows who I am." Sala hissed a little annoyed somebody was now controlling her.
Behind Sala on one of the televisions brought up a special message news bulletin overriding what had been on previously as all the other televisions. On the television was a neko female who was looking to the camera and spoke in a clear voice.
"We interrupt this broadcast to report on events happening within Negav and one of its prominent courts as the trial of the former human officer Daniel "Danny" Milkenshath has just been declared guilty of the murders and disappearances’ of some of the most prominent elves within the elvin district of Negav. Being sentenced to banishment in the jungle, all rights and privileges stripped while within the boundaries of the Isolon Eye. Former officer Daniel who had previously served twenty years of distinguished service within the Negavian police having hid twenty years of crime illegally smuggling in creatures and drugs using tunnels and passages underneath Negav that were once thought sealed. This charge against former officer Daniel comes as a swift smack of realization to the Negavian police force who having always welcomed new members in their ranks with minimal screening. It has yet to be seen what shall happen to former officer Daniel as he is currently being held within the Negavian prison facilities until a proper escort detail can be formed to escort him to the edge of the Isolon Eye and commence his banishment. Respectable Lady Morinzia a prominent elvin leader who has been advocating for reduced strictures on nagas who live within the Eye's range saying that current strictures are unjust and that inside the Motomo Docks. Will be speaking on behalf of former officer Daniel though whether this is because of the incident several weeks ago where she had been kidnapped and recovered by former officer Daniel. Or because of the long standing friendship between the two leading back several decades is as of yet unknown. We now return you to your regular broadcasting" the neko finished and the image on the television returned to what had been previously on.
"Poor bastard he deserves better. But those guys in the law are so corrupt, lazy and incompetent. That when they found him at the scene of the convicts house they had no other choice but to arrest him and place the blame on him or risk looking bad to the general public as well as the elves." said a human standing behind Sala who had looked towards the television when she heard Danny's name. The human looked like your average male but with a white robe with blue lining and a staff as tall as himself in his right hand.
"And just who are you? And how do you know Danny?" Sala asked curious though a little sore knowing she had left her friend behind
"My name is Remy miss Salafeta. And Danny and I are good friends we went on several adventures together with a few others some years ago. Of course we've all separated going our separate ways but we mostly keep in contact if possible." Remy said solemnly looking to Sala.
"So you’re Remy? The boss of these two and whoever else is a part of the group protecting me and holding me here?" Sala asked able to look down on him as she was taller than him by half a head.
"Yes I am. And you are not being held here against your will the choice to leave the tavern is up to you we are only here to protect you and escort you to your next destination. Which I have been waiting for our employer to tell us exactly where it is and have only just barely learned it from him." Remy explained to her sitting down at the bar
"And just where exactly is this destination that I am supposed to be traveling to at?" Sala demanded crossing her arms
"I’m not even sure of it myself. But as far as I know it's supposed to be near the Rosic Neko Village to the East. Meaning that we have a good three weeks to a month’s worth of travel ahead of us, so Roger I need you to take a few of the men and go to the Motamo Docks and get us essential supplies that we'll need for this trip you'll have until tomorrow morning to get the supplies and be back here. We're going to be leaving tomorrow evening and I want everything and everyone ready to go when I say so." Remy ordered Roger who nodded and called out several of the others sitting in the tavern and left.
"So your going to leave tomorrow for a destination that your not sure of? How does that make any sense? Wouldn’t it be better to wait and figure out where your destination is rather then going out and getting lost?" Sala said questioning the sensibility of going out half prepared
"Ah, but that’s the best part you see I've already arranged to meet with a friend of mine at the Rosic Neko Village who knows the area around there and will show us to where we need to go." Remy said with a smirk
"And where exactly are we going to exactly then?" Sala asked wanting to call his bluff
"Well we are going to try and find one of the elusive naga tribes that live out in the Torpaline Coast. The tribe were looking for is the "Yurna Falsa" a small well linked community of nagas. Don't know much about them myself but I've been told they are rather reclusive and keep to themselves when humans are around but are welcoming to their own kind. I’ve questioned the information myself on its validity but so far the only thing I have to go on is just the word of a friend that I trust implicitly." Remy said turning his staff nervously not liking the fact they were aiming blind for a target that may or may not be there when they get there.
"That is very reassuring..." Sala said sarcastically rolling her eyes "So how are we going to get there? I assume our trip isn’t going to be all sunshine and flowers right?" Sala said jokingly
"Why actually yes it is!" Remy said with a chuckle "But seriously it isn’t. We’re going to be traveling through the Chidokai Forest a maze of a place if ever there was one. Filled with Harpies, Dryads, Nagas and all sorts of predatory plants. Then were going to have to make our way through the Great Marsh as well, which is filled with even more predators and slug girls. But for the Great Marsh we are going take a short cut through the Misty Mire a place that is about as dangerous as the marsh itself however the fog and mist there will provide us enough cover that we won’t have to worry about Harpies swooping down from the canopy to snatch us up. Also it can keep us safe from some of the more inexperienced predators as well, from the Misty Mire we are going to cut through the Moyuk Hills. The Moyuk Hills is filled with so many centaurs and other predators that it might be about as dangerous for us as the Chidokai Forest. Our time there is going to be short as those hills are always moving and changing how they look that it is easy to get lost if weren't careful. And from there we'll make a brief stop in the Rosic Neko Village to resupply and link up with our guide and go on our way to that naga tribe." Remy said using the bar top to visually point out their route to Sala.
"So that’s it? Your going to risk your life and the lives of your men to take a person you don’t even know to a destination your not even sure if its even there?" Sala asked curious as to why he was willing to go through so much trouble and danger.
"Yep, trust me this isn’t our first time heading out into the jungle we know how to keep our heads on our shoulders in this situation. Granted were taking a few of our newer people with us then needed, but we have to break them in to the reality of the dangers that the jungle possess sooner or later. Also we are being highly compensated for this job so it’s not like we can easily turn this down either. Not that many people are offering ten pounds of pure skevol." Remy flashed a grin that made Sala shake her head in disgust
"So it’s the money that’s making you do this? Better I just stay here then at the Motamo docks... I'm sure I can fit in easily there." Sala said believing that what Remy was offering was just to much danger and to much of an unknown making the reward... "But... the chance to see the jungle. And go see things I've only heard of in books...." Sala hesitated her need to explore and see the world for what it really was slowly eroded her hesitation to not leave.
"I don’t have to stay there with that naga tribe once we get there do I?" Sala asked trying to get both her wants to agree her want to stay within the safety of the Eye but also her want to learn and explore the unknown and the things that had been denied to her the majority of her life until now.
"That is your choice. This whole trip is your choice you can stay here at the Motamo Docks and Tabs Tavern and get a taste of life outside Negav with the option to explore the jungle at your own peril. Or go with us and explore the jungle with company and some of the more experienced personnel around, and just as you asked can decide for yourself if you wish to stay out in the jungle among your own or return here with us. Trust me making the trip out and back is no small feat and depending on if you’re a good asset and we might even have a spot for you in our ranks. We are always looking for seasoned adventurers and this trip seems to be the best chance to test out just how capable you really are." Remy said giving her a look of seriousness "So still thinking about staying here now?" He asked giving her a smirk able to read her face and the look in her eyes easily.
"Well... I say you are leading yourself and your men to their demise and that anyone who would go on such an adventure would have to not be in their right mind. But then again..." Sala paused not wanting to sound to childish as she would have if she continued but instead stopped herself and looked back at Remy "Alright I'll go with you and you can count on my skills as an Alchemist, I know how to make few useful potions that can heal a person and a few that can help in a fight by confusing a predators senses." Sala offered smiling having made up her mind that she would go with them
"Well then it will be good to have you with us glad you decided to come with us rather than trying to strike out on your own. The world isn’t as forgiving as some would like to think and I've been a part of enough traveling groups to see it first hand so I'll warn you now be ready to have most of your hopes and dreams crushed. But once you get used to the reality of what the world outside the Isolon Eye's reach you'll learn to enjoy it for its wonders and its dangers." Remy explained glad that she would be of some use rather then a piece of baggage that would be more of a hindrance than help.
The rest of the day Remy answered Sala on questions about what their trip would consist of and what were all the dangers she could expect to encounter. But after asking her questions and answering a few of his Sala went back to her room to wait until tomorrow when they would leave and she would get her first real experience of the Felaryan jungle. To say that Sala was eager to get going was an understatement as she could barely sleep the night. But somehow despite how she felt she managed to find sleep and dreamed, not of being amongst others of her own kind but rather she dreamed of finally getting a chance to see and experience the world she had only heard about and dreamed of since she and Sascha had been little kids and pretended to be adventurer's conquering the wild and being famous and most importantly escaping Ferris and Negav once and for all.
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| | | | walkingbyself
Great warrior
Posts : 453
Join date : 2011-02-15
Age : 35
Location : United States
| | Subject: Re: Pet Store Horror's Mon Mar 19, 2012 6:48 am | |
| Mazes and Over Grown Pigeons - Spoiler:
As the next day came, Sala left with the group after a rather unceremonious departure of "Tab's Tavern" as they made the half-day trek to the Motamo Docks. A small community of less humanoid species such as Nagas and Dridders and the many other various humanoids that came to this one place for the protection provided by the Isolon Eye. Unable to enter the great city Negav as laws prevent them living inside the great cities walls. It was around sometime in the evening when they finally reached the Motamo Docks and Sala was impressed by how busy people were even at that late hour as everyone seemed to still be up and working despite there being only maybe a few hours of sunlight left in the day. Nevertheless, as busy as it was Sala and her "escort" of Remy, Toral and Roger. Made their way through busy streets while the rest of Remy's group had been instructed to go around the city which turned out to be a good idea as the streets were so busy Sala had a hard time imagining all of Remy's men walking through the streets without causing any more headaches then were already present. Yet despite all the hustle and bustle of the city Sala had requested to stop by the Motamo Docks so that she could actually see what it was like and maybe get a few new things. Things like a new shirt as well as a new belt as the only shirt she had was the one she had worn as she had gone through the underground and the belt she had made when she brought down Ferris several months ago was tearing and needed to be replaced. So far Toral had said he would take care of the shirt for her and had departed several minutes ago leaving her with Remy and Roger to find her a new belt.
"What about this one Sala?" Remy suggested holding up a leather belt.
"No that only has a single pouch I need one with at least two pouches Remy and it needs to have a means for me to carry my potions with me." Sala said looking over the belt and picked one up she had an eye on that had her two pouches and had several notches in it for items to be put in and was made of a cheap material. "Something like this Remy, but made of something stronger then cloth." Sala said putting the belt back as Remy shook his head mouthing something while Sala continued her search for her belt.
Several minutes and belts later Sala found a belt that matched what she was looking for and instantly grabbed it. It was a brown leather belt it had two pouches several notches for her potions and it had several inscriptions that made it much resistant to most types of damages as well as a nifty enchantment on the pouches to make them hold more than they actually appeared to be able to hold. Smiling Sala grabbed the belt and Remy showing it to him while wrapping it around her waist.
"Alright I'll take this one." Sala smiled turning to the Inu that ran the store
"Tch, finally certainly took your time didn't you? The final total is twenty-five silvers." the Inu said disinterested in Sala or those inside his store and more interested in the little Neera he had been chatting with only a few moments ago. As Sala didn’t have any money Remy walked over and paid for Sala's belt for her while she went ahead and left the store followed closely by Remy as the Inu returned to talking with the Neera.
With Sala having gotten her new belt Remy began to lead her out of the Motamo Docks with
Roger keeping behind them to make sure no one followed them as they left. Once out of the docks Toral soon caught up with them and walked with them back to the rest of their group, which had made a small camp a little ways away from the Motamo Docks. Most of them were busy talking while others were wrestling and practicing. But when Sala, Remy, Toral and Roger rejoined the group most of them stopped what they were doing to welcome them back and would have gone back to what they had been doing if Toral had not called for all of them to gather around for "something special" while also asking Sala to come closer to him.
"Ladies and gentlemen today we have the honor of welcoming another initiate into our fold, for Salafeta has expressed her desire to join our beloved group." Toral said with a smile that even a blind beggar could have guessed at its meaning. "Therefore as to welcome our newest member properly into our group I hereby give her this shirt as a mark of an initiate in our group." Toral said handing Sala a dark red shirt that read: "TOO TASTY TO EAT?" in big white letters on the front.
Taking the shirt from him Sala looked at Toral like he was crazy, but none the less turned her back to the crowd removed her current shirt and quickly put on her new one from Toral and turned around looking over it and then back at Toral. Toral had a grin on his face at seeing Sala with the shirt on most would have expected her to be upset at having to wear the shirt, but Sala figured this was just his way of hazing. So instead of complaining about it she instead decided to turn this simple gesture of hazing around on Toral and hugged him tightly thanking him much to his surprise.
"Oh thank you Toral! Thank you for giving me this shirt! I will always wear it just so you know how much I appreciate it!" Sala said holding him close in a tight hug not letting him escape her despite how much he was struggling to escape her grasp. Sala had learned quickly when they had met that Toral hated being hugged or having anyone this close and Sala was taking full advantage of it and took a small measure of delight in seeing the Neko squirm in her grasp before she eventually let him go. To which Toral quickly took several steps away from her while Remy laughed aloud. As everyone started to calm down Remy signaled for everyone’s attention as he stood up on a large rock, waiting for everyone to settle down some, and began his short speech.
"My friends it is with great joy and trepidation that I must now inform you all of our task at hand. As some of you have probably guessed we are in fact on an escort service to a previous employer who has asked us to escort Salafeta to a previously unknown tribe of Nagas on the Torpaline Coast." Remy announced giving a slight pause to let those gathered talk for a brief moment on what he just said before he continued. "Now as with any normal excursion into the jungle world outside of the range of the Isolon Eye encounters with giant predators like giant Nagas or giant Dridders as well as Dryads is to be expected the same goes with any loses during those encounters. Now I cannot say that all of us will be making it back home in one piece, but it is my personal goal to make it back home with at least half of you. For the new guys here I apologize for introducing you into our ranks by taking you on one of our more dangerous missions, but let this serve as a lesson and a test for you to always expect the unexpected. Due to the higher level of danger and difficulty associated with this task, we would not be able to complete it without the use of all our available personnel. This is also why we are being paid so well for doing this and are better equipped than we normal are. As some of our veterans may have noticed, we are using some of our better equipment that we normally reserve for the more dangerous of missions. Now our route as some of you may already know takes us through the Chidokai Forest then along the outskirts of the Great Marshes and straight through the Moyuk Hills. All very dangerous areas with very high potential's for encounters with giant predators, but know this as long as we work together and support one another the odds of our making it through this journey and back home alive increase considerably. So I ask that you all get some sleep now so that in the morning when we head out we can all reach the Chidokai Forest without incident. Roger you and Toral will be in charge of setting watch rotations for the night make sure everyone gets a four hour watch rotation to spare sleep evenly between everyone, tomorrows going to be a long day people let’s do our best to make sure that we don’t make it our first incident a well." Remy finished and stepped down from the rock. From there Toral and Roger took charge of the group ordering around the others and appointing time watches all through the night.
The morning of the next day came without much fanfare as everyone awoke with some sense of apprehension as today they would finally leave the range of the Isolon Eye and be on their own. Therefore, when Remy gave the order to move out everyone was on edge and keeping an eye out for anything and everything. Sala had made sure to have her belt on and had already put several of her potions on it their uses ranging from simple healing potions to some advanced forms of exploding potions. It took them until mid-day for them finally pass out of range of the Isolon Eye and despite what many had feared Sala included there was not a mass swarm of giant predators coming from nowhere to eat them. In fact the only real source or proof that they had left the Isolon Eye's field was a single sign.
"Warning! You are now leaving the safety of the Isolon Eye! From here on you are on your own. You are now at the top of the menu and the bottom of the food chain. Whatever happens to you now is of your own doing and you will have none, but yourself to blame should something eat you." Toral read loudly enough for everyone to hear. "Ha! How nice for them to give us a warning!" Remy laughed loudly and shook his head before turning to face those gathered.
"Alright listen here everyone we have now reached the point in all your contracts where I have to ask. Is there anyone here that does not want to continue? You will not be treated differently you will remain a part of our number, but you will not receive they pay from this job just your bare minimum as promised in your contracts. So is there anyone here who wishes to remain behind at all?" Remy asked looking out over everyone. Despite what Sala had thought none of them left though she suspected it wasn’t out of the kindness of their heart, but rather to fill their pockets. After the obligatory moment to allow everyone their chance to opt out, Remy stepped away from the sign and headed out past it. Going deeper into the jungle followed closely by both Toral and Roger then then Sala and some of the older members of the group and then finally all the new members, everyone had taken their own steps into the unknown aware of the dangers they faced leaving the safety of Negav and the Isolon Eye behind.
The several day journey from the limits of the Isolon Eye to the Chidokai Forest had been almost negligible and Sala had found that despite all the misgivings and horror stories she had read in Ferris notes and told to her by Danny and everyone else that the jungle wasn't actually bad at all. Sure, they had encountered a few of the predatory plants such as Pod Maws, which one unlucky new guy had the misfortune of learning all about them. They had been walking for an entire day and it was slowly turning to evening when from above several tentacles shot down from a large branch and wrapped all over the man and began to pick him up to the weird mouth overhead. The only reason he was saved at all was that as Remy had instructed everyone to keep an eye out for any plant that may look out of the ordinary for Felarya standards as they passed the southernmost extremes of the Grove of Carnivorous Plants as Remy had explained to her. Remy proved himself to be a capable mage from what Sala could tell, granted he was the first real mage she had met so she was easily impressed by his abilities as he set fire to the Pod Maw from a safe distance. The Pod Maw once on fire hastened its capture of the man as he flailed around in the air as it lifted him up closer to is maw while everyone else watch the tree for more Pod Maws and any other plants. As whenever there was one there were bound to be more, but luckily they had noticed their folly of straying close and as such everyone was on high alert and so far no other plant, but the Pod Maw struck. With the Pod Maw burning and reeling in its last catch Toral made quick work of the plants tentacles with his sharp claws while Roger slashed away at it with his own sword the vines released the man and Roger caught him as the Pod Maw burned to nothing, but cinders.
After that encounter there really wasn’t much in the way of encounter with predatory anything just the normal almost harmless creatures such as a few birds and other smaller creatures that all kept their distance or fled from them. However, Sala still enjoyed their travel and she figured that maybe she had been over thinking the difficulties of the jungle far too much. Of course, she never voiced her thought's to Remy or anyone else she really didn't want to hear anymore horrible stories that could possibly ruin her appreciation for the wide range of flora and fauna that they saw. She also began putting her new belt to use as she collected any samples that she could of the plants around them determined to find out their possibilities to be used in potions. She really wanted to get back to her practice again soon, she even got a notebook to write her notes and the things she learned about her potions attempts and her own discoveries into. Oddly enough, she wrote everything down in Elvin, which didn't upset her quite as much as she had expected. She attributed it to the fact that no one of the group other than herself and possibly Remy knew how to read her notes meaning she could write whatever she wanted to. It also brought her some satisfaction to think that with every letter every word and sentence she wrote she was defying her former master. However, she was quickly finding it tedious to keep thinking of ways that she could prove to the dead Elf that she was living, while he was dead, and that his years of abuse and ordering her around and treating her less than a person were all wasted.
It wasn't until they reached the Chidokai Forest that Sala got her first encounter with the giant inhabitants of the jungle. As they were passing through a wide space between the large trees, the group was overflow by a Giant Harpy that had to be a little over a hundred feet tall with brown feathers on her wings and wild untamed black hair. Remy and Roger had been discussing about splitting the group up to not provide such easily found targets when the Harpy flew over. With that they quickly settled on what to do and the group dispersed as some followed Remy others Roger and Sala and a couple others with Toral.
"Move it! Quickly into the roots before it comes around for another pass!" shouted Toral from a branch above leading his small group ahead and away from the Giant Harpy which had just flown by them a second time as she corralled their small group of five.
"Toral what about the others?! Shouldn’t we be trying to regroup with them?" Sala shouted up to him helping the others in the small group to get into hiding.
"We are! Me Roger and Remy have our own communication method with each other, were trying to get to a safer place while trying to lose the Harpy. This area is to open making it easy for Harpies to get at us so were looking for a narrower place once one of us finds that were all going to regroup and..." Toral tried to explain then with a speed Sala had not seen him move before watched as he quickly dived down off the branch's trying to get down quickly as the Harpy narrowly missed him and flew off once more.
"Damn fur barfer stop runnin away!" shouted the Harpy circling back around
"I'll explain later just move!" shouted Toral pushing Sala into the roots under a tree once he had gotten down from the tree branch.
"Whoa hey watch out waaahhh!" Sala shouted as Toral pushed her and they both began to fall rolling through the roots like one long tunnel slide. Crashing through small hanging roots and cobwebs and rolling over each other both Sala and Toral ended up colliding with the others that had gone down the long winding slide before them. "Let’s agree to never do that again." Sala said slowly trying to untangle herself from Toral while her head was still spinning from having rolled around like a rag doll while the other four in their small group helped her and Toral back up.
"Agreed, is everyone alright?" Toral said as he stood shakily his ears tucked against his head
"Were all good to go Toral just some bumps and bruises, but that’s about the most it." answered one of the newer Neko recruits.
"That’s good to hear. Okay listen up we still have some ground to cover before the sun falls and well meet up with Remy and Roger a ways up ahead so I need everyone to be on their guards. We are in the Chidokai forest now if you haven’t noticed and it is known for its various naturally made mazes from the trees around us and their root systems and branches. Also thanks to those mazes it has made it even harder to spot out Dryads so make sure you are extra careful around here least you unknowingly walk into the mouth of one." Toral said starring at all of them as if they would do so purposely "Now let’s move out." Toral said walking onwards
Sala wasn’t sure if they were lost or not as everywhere she looked everything looked the same tall trees to her left and right and ahead of her, although Toral assured her and everyone else that they were not lost she couldn’t help, but notice the Neko's eyes darting every which way as if he were looking for something. Every now and then Toral would call for their group to stop, but as for what he was stopping for she wasn’t sure as she hadn’t seen anything, but more of the same trees and bushes everywhere. However, they did briefly come across a set of tracks in the dirt, which Toral quickly identified as those belonging to a giant Naga. However, they had been in luck or so they thought they were in luck as the tracks were several days old and from what they could tell the Naga that had passed by had to be a real large one from how wide the markings were. Moving on quickly Toral led their group away from the old Naga tracks though maybe a little too quickly then they should have as he led them right into an open area and right into the gaze of an over flying Harpy.
"Take cover!" Toral shouted as everyone dispersed from where they had been. Some heading back the way they come, the others trying to run for the other side of the clearing and Sala and one other human went running in the same direction. As they ran from the Harpy, it followed them through the many trees and branches flying through them with ease despite how it seemed almost impossible for a being of her size to fit through the tight fitting.
As they ran, the skies began to darken and the sound of thunder was heard all over as the sounded rolled and reverberated through the trees of Chidokai Forest with flashes of lightning filling the darkness under the trees. The wind blowing through the trees sounding like the moans of the damned while the first drops of rain began to fall down from the upper levels of the tree branches to reach the ground below. The dirt soon turning into mud and covered Sala's tail and body dirtying her scales that she tried to keep in a decent enough condition to look nice. However, at that moment she could care less about how she looked as she just noticed something move in front of her without thinking she narrowly missed seeing the large purple blur heading towards her and ducked down just in time to hear the human that had been running with her scream. Not having the time to think to try and rescue the guy she ran again, but noticed when the giant vine with the vaguely human shape moving in it returned to its tree she saw an opening in the roots under the tree. Without thinking she dived for the opening and had done so just in time to as she could have sworn the sharp claws of the harpy had closed around the end of her tail when with a loud crash Sala shot into the hole.
"Oi! Come outa there ya slippery noodle!" shouted the Harpy kicking at the hole trying to make it larger to get her foot inside it.
"Hell no! Buzz off you over grown pigeon! Why don’t you go find something else closer to your own intelligence level you dirt grubber!" Sala shouted back watching as the Harpy continued to try and get at her fearing she actually would reach her.
"Listen hear ya wriggly worm, if ya don't come outta there now I’m going to break this tree all over yer head!" she shouted as it sounded like the whole cave was starting to come down from whatever the Harpy was doing.
"Stop you stupid Harpy!" Sala said concerned as she backed up further into the dark cave as dirt started to fall down faster and in larger amounts having barely missed being crushed in a cave in once she didn’t want to test her luck with a second.
"Then get yer scaly wormy ass out here so I can eat'cha!" the Harpy said the shaking and falling dirt stopping for a moment as the Harpy paused in its attempts to get Sala out
"And you can go get hit by lightning you stupid bird! Like hell I'm coming out now!" was all Sala could say to that and quickly regretted it as the Harpy began to kick and do whatever it was she was doing to the tree as chunks of dirt began falling and the sound of tearing roots. Sala didn't have to be a genius to knew that the whole place was about to come down around her. Turning around and heading deeper into the darkness, she slithered away as fast as she could feel the tunnel starting to collapse around her and with a sickeningly loud crunching crashing sound; she dived forward closing her eyes.
With eyes closed shut Sala feared she was dead, but if she was then why did she feel sore all over. In addition, why did it feel as if something heavy was on her tail and something cool running past her skin and her shirt sticking to her skin? With a groan Sala opened her eyes to see only darkness switching her eye sight to her thermal sighting she could vaguely make out the area around her the reason for the feeling of cool liquid was evident enough as a small stream of water flowed past her body down into the tunnel ahead of her. That was a good sign it meant that there might be an exit further in this hole or just a dead end, which she feared.
"Well I'm not dead, but what the hell is... damn it all." Sala bemoaned as she looked behind her and saw a good portion of her tail was trapped under a pile of dirt, mud and rocks. Cursing her luck while also being grateful enough that it was still holding out she looked into her new belt and grabbed a bright orange liquid container. She hated what she was about to as the contents inside of the container were highly explosive when shaken or jolted violently as she was about to do and would explode when it was forced to stop rapidly. But unless she did so she would remain stuck inside that cave and shook it tossing it behind her and quickly ducked down covering her head bracing herself for the pain that was about to come. And pain it was as the container exploded against the rubble and blew it off her tail and washing over her body in heat and making the cave rumble and shake again as the already unstable ground began to start giving away again. It was a powerful enough explosion to get rid of soft things like mud and dirt and loosely packed dirt and rocks and if it hit a person tear a nice bit of them apart or burn them, but it wasn't strong enough to destroy her tail thanks to her scales.
Sala yelled out in pain even though she could feel her tail was intact, but felt like it was torn getting back up Sala took off further into the tunnel though every time she moved her tail it hurt badly and was momentarily blinded by the white hot heat that filled the tunnel. In addition, it burned her secondary eyelids that gave her the ability to see heat. Switching back to her normal vision not needing to worry about where she was going giving her eyes time to heal from after being blinded by the heat. However, another reason she had to flee was not just the second cave in, but also the fact her explosion had blown away a thin section of the roofing and her tunnel was quickly flooding with water. Hearing the sound of splashing pooling water ahead Sala readied herself for another fall, but instead found herself sliding down another slide that twisted every which way until it dropped into a cavern that was lighted by some strange mushrooms and found herself splashing into a small pond of water. Her body felt like it was stinging everywhere at from being in the cold water and swam slowly to the shore where she took stock of her situation. Taking note of the state she was in as well as what her surroundings were like and groaned as both seemed to be quite miserable.
Her tail and scales as well as her body were covered in scratches and cuts that hurt like hell and she swore that as a good length of her tail had what looked to be a single claw mark running down her tail cleanly cutting through her scales leaving the soft muscle underneath exposed. She was glad that Felarya's soil prevented infections or diseases or she would be in danger to more than giant predators, grabbing a hand full of mud, and began to cover that wound. She immediately regretted it as she cried in pain from having placed mud onto her wound, but she had read Ferris notes on Felarya's soil and some of her own experiments with it. So she was certain that doing this would do her good in the long run as long as she didn't mind the pain as she applied it to other parts of her tail and body. She would have used a healing potion of her own make, but she had not been able to make any and the two she had left she was saving for situations that were more dire than this. The shirt she was wearing was slightly burned from the explosion, but still did its purpose. However, it was soaked through and dirty, removing her shirt and dunked it in the water to get the mud and dirt out of it and wrung it out to get rid of the water and placed it on the base of her tail to let it dry out.
Self-assessment complete Sala looked around and saw that she was in a rather large cavern that had the pond of water behind her that was being filled by two sources one of them being the hole she must have come from. The other a hole gave her a view to the world outside and showed that it was still raining. Remy had told Sala previously that whenever it rained in certain parts of the Chidokai Forest it normally did so much that it would flood out most of the area. That was something she really did not want to experience. Along the walls of her cavern she noted that only a few of the many fungi provided enough light to only hint at how big the cavern truly was. There were areas where even their light did not reach, but further away in the dark, she could see light blue glow from what she suspected to be other funguses growing and from the size and distance from her she had to guess that they had to be rather large fungus. And in Felarya where if something was bigger than you normally meant it was big enough to eat you or something was nearby that could eat you. Taking that into mind, she looked around and saw that the water in the pond was overflowing and running down one of several tunnels that had to be just a little taller than her. With not many choices open to her Sala decided to follow the flowing water Danny's previous teaching helping her out a lot so far, however every time she moved her tail would hurt extraordinarily as if the simplest of movements would cause her pain. Nevertheless, she fought through the pain and headed into the tunnel following the flow of water as it would lead her to either a dead end or the exit. It was a rather long and complicated route constantly turning back and forth and making dips and turns into more puddles of water. At different times, she could swear she heard something large moving overhead or beside her and quickly looking in that direction she saw nothing, but darkness and that was starting to worry her that she could not see anything, but hear just fine. She was wishing she could switch back to her thermal vision, but she did not want to use it again without giving her eyes time to heal properly.
After several drops and swimming through a couple of underground lakes that washed off the mud that was on her forcing her to have to recover her tail and other wounds in mud which always hurt. However, with each time, she had to recover her tail she could see that it was healing slowly, but surely, until her tail was completely healed it would still hurt like hell to move. After a time she considered herself lucky for if there was not for the flowing water she would have been lost. However, she eventually saw the light at the end of the tunnel in the literal sense, as ahead of her long winding path she saw light. Rather what little light could filter through the storm clouds above to the world below as the sound of rainfall could be easily heard as well and that the sun had gone down a long time ago. Gathering her courage and donning her shirt again Sala pressed onwards out of the tunnel and out into the outside world and quickly coiled her tail around the branch she was now on as she looked down below and ahead of her amazed at what she saw all around her.
All around her were more trees that formed a canyon and it looked as if the large branch she was on spanned the canyon that had to be large enough to fit several giant predators side by side. But in that canyon under her was yet more jungle and rushing water that as she looked to where it ran saw that it went to a large open area that looked like an impossibly large lake of some sort with floating islands of various sizes. It was truly a unique sight to see, what with all of the moving islands and the vastness of that giant lake that even at this height she couldn’t see the other side of. Yet Sala had no desire to go explore it. Instead, she looked ahead of her and saw that the far side where her branch grew up to looked to be another level of the forest. It also looked to be covered in webs of gigantic size of which caused Sala to shudder at the thought of the size of the creature that made them. She dearly hopped that she would not meet their maker as it would likely mean the premature end of her journey, but she saw or rather heard something that lifted her spirits up a little.
"Sala! Sala!" Toral's voice came from the other side of the canyon. She would never have thought she would have been so happy to hear that Neko’s voice before yet she was as she shouted for him as well.
"Toral! I'm over here! Toral in the canyon!" Sala shouted hoping the Neko would hear her and apparently, he did as the sound of his voice kept coming closer. However, Sala might as well have been shouting at a wall for all the good her yelling had done as she saw a green and red Jaykay bird fly overhead shouting her name.
"Stupid birds." she muttered shaking from the cold of the rainwater clinging to her body as the rain continued to fall making her branch even harder to keep herself above it. Looking to the wall before her and the tunnel behind her and the ground far below Sala took a deep breath, closed her eyes for a brief moment, and carefully made her way across the branch. Her progress was slow mostly in part because of the injury on her tail. Plus the branch was longer and wider than she had at first expected, but again her long tail proved to be a blessing despite the pain from her tail injury and as the rain washed off the mud she had placed over her wounds repeatedly she was pleasantly surprised to find most them healed. Mainly the small ones her larger tail injury was still there, and needed more time to heal then the smaller ones.
Making her way across the branch she noticed that it didn't go all the way up to the next level of web filled forest, but actually went into another tunnel and that the actual "ground" was still far above her. After crossing the branch and reaching the other side she looked down into the canyon again and saw the Harpy from earlier or one similar flying down below her, how odd it felt to Sala to think she was standing up above a flying Harpy. Shaking her head to stop herself from thinking too hard on the physics or how out of place this whole jungle was she turned her back to the canyon wall and continued into the cave and was greeted once more by darkness.
As she entered, she noticed a big difference from last the last cave. This one had no stream of water no vines or anything to show the way, but what she did have was a light blue glow ahead of her with nowhere else to go and nothing else to go by Sala made her way to the glowing object. As she made her way, she noticed that she was starting to go down a slopping hill. And when she finally reached the glowing object she saw that it was a giant glowing mushroom much like those she had saw earlier and that it was only one of several other giant mushrooms that stood a good two stories taller than her previous home in Negav. In here, she could see that there were other growths besides fungus, hearing the sound of falling moving water, she saw a brightly glowing pond and stream of water that glowed a bright blue and wound its way through the dark cavern. She could also hear the sound of insects moving in the darkness chirping away as well as the flutter of wings of what she hopped were birds not bats. Not that she was afraid of bats, but more she didn't want to suddenly find herself in the middle of a swarm of flapping wings. Diverting her attention back to the water she saw that it fed from a waterfall of sorts from the world above the night light barely managing to pierce into the darkness.
In all it was a truly breath taking sight to behold and the calmness and serenity of it all helped to calm Sala's nerves a lot as well. Or it would have if not for her need to reunite with everyone else and the giant beetles with pointy spines on their backs heading towards her. She barely felt the whisk of a sharp spine flying past her head and heard it imbedding itself in the mushroom beside her. Grabbing a hold of the spine for later study Sala pulled it out of the soft fleshy mushroom and fled from the sounds of those angry spiky beetles. Her first and most direct heading was to get to the water and try to find the way out that way, but the stream stretched on and the hail of spikes from behind her was not letting up as several more flew past her missing. The distance between that mushroom and the stream was a good distance away and her tail was constantly reminding her not to make mistakes. As the spikes continued, flying at her she figured it would be a good idea to study them later if she made it out of this alive and gathered several spikes that landed close to her though not going out of her way to get those too far from her.
Sala was following the stream the best she could she really was, but alongside the stream were more fungal growths that exuded a strange spore cloud around them and Sala didn't feel like falling prey to simple fungal growths. So she would always try to avoid them the best she could, but the bugs seemed to be corralling her towards the river and those fungi to the point where one of them even stood in her way challenging her with its spike pointed at her. Gritting her teeth and steeling herself to the pain, that she knew was to come and leapt at the beetle using her tail for extra push and coiled herself around the bug mindful of its pincers and spines. However, with its back full of spines and its constant struggling and snapping pincers it was hard for her to keep a hold of the thing. Nevertheless, once she had enough of it constricted she tightened her coils around the bug hoping to crush it into oblivion. A task easier said than done as it was tossing and turning trying to impale its spines into her unprotected upper half as it shot several of its spines missing her by no more than a few inches at times. However, as it depleted its spines her tail would take their place and squeeze harder it took what felt like an eternity until she heard a loud crunch a sure sign she was finally getting through the beetles tough carapace.
Then it all went downhill, as one of the spines jabbed into her tail. Barely missing her other injury that still hadn't healed, breaking off half way in her tail the other half still attached to the beetle. Sala yelled in pain, crushing the rest of the beetle with her remaining strength, and heard the final death screech of the beetle before it popped coating her tail in whatever organs that used to be inside it. The gooey remains covered her tail and dripped into her wound causing her more pain than the spine stabbing her did and as she extricated herself from the dead beetle tried to make her way away from the dead beetle. However, those that pursued her were quickly catching up thanks to both her semi-old tail injury and the spike was slowing down her movement. Sala figured the spine had to be covered with a poison of a sort maybe not the fastest acting one, but she could still feel her tail starting to move slower. It wasn’t long until she found herself being surrounded by what looked like a whole swarm of the things as they buzzed angrily at her their spines all directed towards her. Stopping she found herself surrounded as the poison from the spine ran through her same with her stared at all those spines wondering which would kill her first. Then by some unseen reason all the beetles began clacking among themselves and began retreating and left her alone this sudden act by those beetles left Sala more worried than relived as she wondered what it was that could possible make those things flee.
She didn't have to wait long to find out as she heard a very distinctive hiss coming from the darkness to her right. Unable to abide by remaining unable to see Sala switched to her thermal vision and was both terrified and in awe of what she saw. It was if she really had stepped into another world in here, the entire cavern was alive in some way shape or form. Giant tubers that swayed in the air from a non-existent source of wind that Sala could discern, in the air there were in fact bats flying around or what would pass as bats for this cave they seemed slightly larger than normal bats. There were also many other creatures that lived down here and all sorts of other plants. Each gave off their own source of heat even if it was just barely, but among all the dim blue's and purples as well as reds and yellows was a brightly glowing creature that had to be bigger than anything else she had ever seen excluding the Harpy that is.
Approaching her was a giant snake the size of which she could only guess to be bigger than her and longer than her, it had all the cunning and intelligence of an old snake of its size, and she was on its menu. That she could tell as it moved towards her moving through the fungal growths around it as if they weren't there. Sala knew she was out matched and knew that she would be no trouble for it unlike that beetle had been for her and in her current poisoned state she was even less of a threat as she backed away from it as much as she could grimacing as she felt the spine in her tail hampering her movements. Without the time to take it out safely Sala had to leave it there constantly poisoning her with its poison coating, though it did remind her of those spines she held in her hand and how slick they were in the poison that they were covered in. With the possibility of death by being eaten, the idea of her hands being covered in poison was nowhere near the top of her priorities.
Deciding to take her chances with the spores near the river then to risk being eaten she made her way to the stream, but as she watched the snake take its time in approaching her she forgot to watch for the spores and was immediately covered by them. She would have been more worried about the spores if she wasn’t already poisoned and being followed by something that wanted to eat her. So whatever unknown effects those spores were doing to her as she inhaled them she would have to worry about later. Crossing the stream, she felt the cool water flowing over her body and scales washing off the bug guts from her tail thankfully though it didn’t hurt as badly a good sign her tail was nearly healed, but still needed time to get better.
However, there was a plus from having been in that water that the spine in her tail was no longer covered in poison so she was no longer getting any more “new” poison into her. Glad to have a reprieve of some sort she still had to worry about the snake and the poison inside her already as she backed herself up against a giant glowing blue mushroom while the snake crossed the stream as well though it made sure to lift its body over the stream and spores. Sala didn't have much time to think the thing was done toying around with its prey and was moving faster towards her so she had to think fast and looked for something anything to help her. Again, she had to hit herself forgetting those spines in her hand and quickly coiled herself around the mushroom and climbed up and stabbed the spines beside her as well as finally removing the one from her tail that hurt almost as badly when Ferris had cut her stomach open. Grabbing another of her exploding potions, she opened it and poured some of it onto the spines next to her coating them in the explosive substance and their own poison. Rather than throwing it at the snake like most others would have, she would have needed a far stronger concoction of explosive substances to damage this snake.
Sala's actions did not go unnoticed by the snake as it darted towards her unable to finish the rest of her plan she spilled the rest of the mixture on the mushroom cap. Then went back down as quickly as she could, but kept coiled around it and began constricting and pulling the mushroom stalk towards her so it would fall towards the snake. The snake seeing its prey trying to block its path with the mushroom hissed moving with a speed unheard of for a creature its size in any other world, but Felarya. Opening its mouth wide Sala only caught a glimpse of the inside of its mouth and the fangs inside it and the black hole of an abyssal entrance before with a loud squishing moaning sound the mushroom toppled over towards the snake. What happened when it fell and hit the snake was quite the spectacle as her plan worked almost exactly as she had hoped it would. With the sudden motion of the mushroom falling activated, the reactive properties of her exploding potion and the sudden stop of the mushroom landing on the snake caused an explosion that Sala made sure to switch to her normal sight for this time.
As the chemicals did not react well to sudden jarring stop and exploded the top portion of the mushroom and the spines Sala had embedded in its cap making it acted like a giant spiked mushroom grenade that tore into the snake’s body. It wasn’t so much the explosion that did the snake in as much as it was the many poisoned spines that were propelled into it burying themselves deep inside the snake and ripping into it. The snake hissed in pain and anger as it lifted itself up and away from the destroyed mushroom shaking itself in useless futility to try and dislodge the spines.
But after five minutes of listening to the snake hiss and thrash about the thing finally fell dead before Sala its eyes still open as well as its mouth as it bled through the many wounds on its back. She couldn’t believe it. She had actually done it whether it had been by luck or so divine intervention Sala had done it and she felt happy and laughed. Slowly at first then louder and faster as she could not believe her eyes then she clenched her eyes shut in pain and was reminded of her own dire situation as she grabbed her vial of anti-venom and hoped it would prove useful in this dire moment and drank all of it.
It tasted terrible like Vinegar mixed with tar. Yet she forced herself to keep it down, as she prayed it would work. She closed her eyes dropping the vial as she fell down holding herself up with one hand and felt bile rising up within her as it felt like her whole body was convulsing as if her own blood was determined to fight and destroy her as it moved quickly up from her tail and limbs into her gut. Then with a horrible retching sound Sala felt the bile coming rushing up from inside her, and expelled itself out of her mouth in one long horrible feeling and came out as a black tar that covered the ground before her and reeked of something foul. However, when it passed Sala felt ten times better if a little weaker and looked at her surroundings once more taking slow deep breaths to truly enjoy the sights.
She could see everything now with her heat vision she even saw those beetles from before as they kept just outside her vision they seemed to be eyeing her not sure of what to do. She imagined much of their hesitation stemmed from the fact she had managed to kill such a creature as this snake so easily it would seem to them when another would have known she had defeated it by only the slimmest of margins. Sala was glad the things kept their distance as she went closer to the big snake and studied it as best she could figuring if she went through the trouble of killing it she could at least learn more about this snake she had killed.
What she learned about it surprised her, though she wasn't sure of the exact how’s and whys of it she learned it had an innate ability to phase through solid objects and it had perfect vision for seeing things within the darkest corners of this cavern. All that she learned from it and more, but she could not spend more time with the snake as she felt herself growing more and more tired by the moment. Although she considered the time spent studying the snake time well spent and took a few samples from it she eventually had to leave it and continue as she followed the winding stream once more keeping to her side of the stream as the beetles kept to their side.
Sala wasn't sure how far the stream went, but follow it she did and luckily for her she had no more encounters with beetles or snakes though she did have to swat away some annoying bats once every now and then. She eventually found the exit of the strange cavern in a tunnel the stream flowed in a side passage up out and taking it she found herself following the tunnel it wound its self all around and after an eternity of following it saw that the exit was right ahead of her. Unsurprisingly it was still raining and the she was unable to tell if the sun was rising yet due to the bleak grey clouds that still hung tightly to the sky above raining down their contents on the jungle world below.
Making her way towards the exit Sala was glad that the night was finally over and her subterranean adventures would all be over soon as she made her way up the tunnel towards the dim light of the exit.
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