To Save a World Ch. 04

"So, I did promise to make it worth your while." Sarasswena uncrossed her chocolate legs and actually sat up straight in her chair. "This is pure speculation on my part, but based on the information I have gathered, I think I might just hit the nail in the head. I gather I know where our errant Seer is. I think he is in the Heart. In the Va'sardika. I think he went there to bring about something related to his belief of the calamity. And."

A pregnant pause. Sarasswena, buzzing with the high of victory, was ever the rebellious showman.

"I truly believe that he is dead."

* * *

It was yet before dawn. Outside the oppressive wall of leaves that made the roof of the Great Forest, the sky was undoubtedly a deep, inky black, dusted by the silvery specks of millions upon millions of stars scattered in radiant chaos. Perhaps waiting for some tired, old astrologist to arrange them into fanciful constellations. Perhaps content to lie exactly just where they are, a radiant dot in a pointillist picture of the unknowable cosmos.

Inside the forest, though, is a vastly different scene. It was in that unsure moment when the night-creatures were about to slumber for the day, and the creatures of the sun are yet to be woken up. A limbo of mysterious, silent darkness, the absence of activity creeping at you like something alive in the corner of your eye. A slumbering stillness lay upon the interior of the Great Forest.

For Aaron, though, the total darkness was a new, novel thing. The young man tried to remember a time when there was absolutely no light around him, when the silence was so oppressive that it actually left a ringing absence in his. He thought of past camping trips, times when he'd locked himself in his room, under a blanket, inside the closet, and trying to remember the sights and sounds and feel of it. He failed, of course. He cannot remember anything from his past.

His left arm lay draped across the fragile, naked form of Lydia, her meager chest rising and falling like gentle waves of sea crawling to the shore. Her whole body clung to him, alabaster arms wrapped around his torso while her dainty legs did their best to ensnare him. Her head was tucked into the crook of his neck. She smelled like sweat and sex and safety. So much so that he had to smile.

His right arm was buried underneath her. He shifted it minutely to let the blood flow. She may be small and light, but keeping her whole form on top of his arm was no small feat. It was what had woken him up, his right arm throbbing from the lack of circulation as Lydia heartily slumbered on his limb. They were both lying on their sides, Aaron facing the outside of what must be a peculiar little cave and trying to make sense of the faint outlines made of a thousand different shades of black. The scant moonlight that made it past the thick canopy of leaves above dropped like a thousand lasers, not really illuminating anything and instead lending the view an air of mysterious uncertainty.

The air around him smelled like the approaching dawn, thick with the aroma of life. Fresh like nothing he's ever scented, the air seeming to cleanse his lungs in its chilly path into his body, smelling like a million different plants and flowers all blended into one.

Aaron cast his mind back to just before he awoke. He had touched that glowing blue liquid, the simple action of seemingly no import tearing him apart cell-by-cell until his mind overloaded with pain. It had put him back again, for sure, but not the way he was before. He could feel it. Something had changed. The befuddled young man would never be able to point it out, but it felt like he saw things a little differently, heard things not quite in the same way. Deep within his mind was a new, foreign awareness, one that was a part of him as much as anything else, but one that certainly wasn't there before.

He wondered if touching the mysterious puddle had something to do with his miraculous healing. Also, it would be good to know why he went sex-crazy just after he got healed.

But then again, it would be good to know anything at all about his current situation.

He sighed. Aaron was getting used to operating in ignorance. No use asking questions that nobody can answer. It was like... like throwing cabbages at a brick wall. Utterly pointless. And more than a little insane.

Aaron closed his eyes, not really sleeping, but when he opened them stronger light was already beginning to pour down into the gloom of the forest. The thin shafts of errant moonlight were slowly becoming fat, bright rays of the sun. Outside of the dense canopy, the sky would doubtlessly be turning blue, perhaps a fetching shade of bright egg yolk yellow were you facing the Eastern horizon. Despite feeling terribly unilluminated himself, Aaron still felt a warm glow of hope at the thought of a new day.

And it was a new day. Sunlight revealed before him a leafy, verdant paradise, far more wonderful than anything he could have ever imagined. The hollow they were sleeping in was actually situated in the middle of an irregular clearing, bordered on all sides by pillowy mounds of greens and reds and yellows. He tried looking past the immediate wall of leaves, but as far as he could tell it was the same story all around him; a dense metropolis of grass, shrubs, ferns and vines.

Up above, ancient trunks of mighty, enormous trees stood tall. Stretched out to defy the heavens themselves, the vegetation that grew readily on their rough surfaces told the story of their timeless vigil.

They supported what looked like a veritable cloud of thick, living canopy -- there were so many leaves, branches and all sorts of rope-like vines it almost completely blocked out the sun in most places. Aaron vaguely wondered how the plants could thrive so much with scant sunlight, but he chocked it up to cabbage-and-brick-wall analogy again.

The young man yawned. He felt leisurely abuzz with energy. He had already been awake for quite some time, but despite that he didn't feel the least bit tired. Just a growing sense of calm, a serene curiosity at his condition and the world around him. He nuzzled into Lydia's fire-hued hair again, and breathed in. For the moment, it seemed like everything was all right with the world.

There was a rustle, a scratching sound, and then a figure dropped lithely into the ground. It made its way past the thick underbrush to their clearing.

"Oh, he wakes!" It observed, now easily standing before Aaron. "Hello there, lad. You were quite the noisy couple last night."

"Hello," Aaron greeted past his vigorous blush, "Um. Sorry for that. Didn't know what came over me."

"Well, I know what came." The old beastman laughed boisterously, seeing Aaron's discomfort.

"Um, would you mind?" Aaron asked after a while, gesturing to his and his partner's conspicuously naked form.

"What? Starting another round again? How indecent! You sure you're not in your breeding season?" The old man laughed again, but turned around and started fussing with what he assumed was the camp fire with his back turned to them.

'Of course,' he thought, 'Otherworldly treks through a magical forest won't be complete without two wolf-people and a camp fire.'

After a while, he disentangled himself from Lydia and found their scattered clothes. He covered the sleeping young woman with his shirt to ward against the morning chill, and folded the rest of her clothing right beside her.

"I'm Aaron Greeves." He introduced himself to their new companion, "I don't think you were here before, were you?"

"Well met, Aaron. My name is Trasnu of the Sky Treader Clan," the creature replied, looking back at Aaron from his hunched position by the fire. Although the creature was wearing what appeared to be normal trousers, the morning light illuminated most of his torso in all its fantastical glory. He's already gotten the initial shock of seeing all the human-plus-fur-and-wolf-bits thing out of his system so what stood out most was his unique fur coloring; an appealing blend of mottled, red, brown and black shades which uncannily reminded him of military camouflage uniforms. Looking closer, he also noticed that some of Trasnu's fur was starting to grey, especially around his hands, face and head. The tips of his ears were angled snow-capped mountains.

"And yes, you are right," Trasnu continued, "I was brought here rather forcefully by our mysterious, ugly-faced stranger."

Aaron wondered at that, but decided that there were more important things to ask about. He sat beside the creature in the warming campfire. "What about the caravan? Did they follow you? How did you get out?"

"The slavers are done for!" He exclaimed proudly, "Unless the spirits spit food at 'em, they will all be busy dragging back their tails to the nearest town to beg or pillage!" Aaron was fascinated as he listened to the graying old beastman as he recounted how he and four other Kin sowed chaos at the slaver's camp, topping it all off by stealing as much food as they all could and then setting fire to the rest. He turned somber when he heard that one of his tribesmen was caught as they were escaping, and that two others fell to wounds within the forest. The other one was lost, separated as they made their hasty escape from the massing force of their enemy. He could only hope the best for them.

"Noisy as ever, Old Hunter." A new voice intruded in the final words of Trasnu's tale.

He turned to the sound of the voice, towards the hollow trunk he was sleeping in. Gleaming silver-white fur greeted his vision, the scantily clad, exotically athletic figure that drew closer to their camp definitely feminine. A thin strip of cloth from Lydia's cowl was fashioned into a little skirt that seemed to completely rely on the abundant curve of her hips in order to stay on, while a dangerous wrap of cloth struggled to contain chests that looked ample enough despite her obviously undernourished frame. She had the nonchalant, unconscious sway of a predator as she slowly made her way to where they were sitting -- every movement highlighting her graceful, natural athleticism and miles upon miles of her appealing, mysterious, white fur.

Aaron hurriedly averted his eyes.

"Ah, here's another naked goddess! The clan's venerable Shaman itself!" Trasnu exclaimed in a showman's voice, doing a peculiar, exaggerated little bow. Aaron had to chuckle along upon seeing the woman's discomfort, so reminiscent of his own just a while ago.

"Stop it," the woman groused, swatting the old wolf's bowed head, "That's disrespectful. Leiyis yet lives."

"I'd bet my gorgeous tail that old woman wouldn't die to hand the title to you, anyway."

"No, she'd probably die from your shoddy humor."

Trasnu gasped, his hand dramatically touching his chest. "You wound me so, your excellency."

The silver furred woman rolled her eyes at him, flicking her ears in an obvious sign of annoyance but with a small smile on her lips. "Forgive him," She said, turning to Aaron, "The old dog is obviously a little bit senile." She dodged a flying stick that suddenly came at her.

"Anyway," the woman continued, "I hope you can forgive me for the informalities given our... situation, but let me take this chance to formally thank you on behalf of the whole Sky Treader Clan. You have freed us from our bondage and risked your life for us. The spirits bind us to you and yours, that we may repay this awesome debt."

"Trasnu," she turned to the suddenly somber old man, "Let your honor be witness that I have declared a blood debt to this man as the Shaman of a Clan of the Kin. Let our fellows regard him as an equal, for our lives are tied to his, for better or worse. May the pure spirits guide us.

"If the Spirit Guide wills it so, the Clan will so follow. May the pure spirits guide us."

"Wait just a fucking minute!" Aaron bolted upright, hands outstretched as if fending off an attack. Blood debts? Binding lives? It sounded terribly old and altogether cheesy, but those were some serious stuff. "A blood debt? I have literally no idea what you're talking about, but that doesn't sound good."

"Yes, a blood debt." the woman replied, "We would have been dead -- or worse -- without you granting us the opportunity to escape. It is only right that we repay you in kind; life for life."

Aaron took a deep breath, "First of all; no. Second, I wasn't the sole reason for breaking you out -- that was Lydia, and in case you're looking to pledge your lives to her she's over there sleeping. And third -- who are you even?"

Trasnu snorted in the background. The silver furred woman looked surprised for a bit, then embarrassed. "Oh! I'm sorry," she said, her triangle tufts of ears held back in embarrassment, "My name is Serche. I am apprenticed to the honored Guide of the Sky Treader Clan."

"Serche here is one of the most gifted practitioners of the Spirit Arts in over a century. She carries the future of the entire Sky Treader Clan on her little shoulders." Trasnu interjected, flicking a stick to the fire now burning heartily in a peculiar hole in the ground.

"I am not," Serche sulked, the formal air she carried now thoroughly depleted by the old man's nonchalance. She wanted to sound important and respectable for the reinstatement of the blood debt, but the nasty dog just had to ruin it. And the clueless human! She couldn't decide whether to be embarrassed or enraged, the proclamation of her clan's most important pledge so summarily denied. The young woman squatted by the fire next to Aaron, a discontented frown on her face, ignorant of the fact that Aaron had to avert his eyes again, because looking down on her like that was definitely dangerous.

"Okay," Aaron decided to take the reins in the conversation, seeing Trasnu's eyes gleam at the sight of Serche so discomfited. He just had a feeling that he shouldn't let the two of them start another pointless banter, or nothing important will get discussed. "Here's the thing. I'm getting really tired of not knowing anything right now. And since it looks like we don't have anything important to do, why don't we -- I don't know, try to enlighten each other's minds of our own personal circumstances?"

"A wise choice," Trasnu nodded, "If we are to cross this forest in one piece, then the group has to act as a whole. That means hunting parties. The Sky Treader's hunter groups are one of the best of all the Kin - and one of the most basic things a whelp is taught when entering the jungle is trust. You cannot traverse the unknown without trust in your companions."

"So we are on the same level as one of your puppies, old hunter?"

"I am afraid so, Serche. But don't worry, the forest and this situation would make whelps out of every one. It's not something to despair about." The old hunter sat on the ground opposite Aaron, now holding a fruit that looked like an orange apple and taking light bites out of it. "So I shall start. But before that, shall I offer the lady a seat?"

Surprised, Aaron looked back, seeing Lydia approaching uncertainly, dressed in the simple garments he laid out for her. She looked embarrassed, her radiant face glowing red in the crisp morning. "Ah, hello." She squeaked out, the shift in languages, the change of words and inflection suddenly obvious to Aaron, "I, uh-"

The young man couldn't help it, he just had to smile. She looked extremely embarrassed, probably coming to terms with what happened during the previous day, and the fact that everyone knew it. The young lady seemed to squirm under their gaze. Somewhere inside his mind, he wondered how her character survived the disastrous childhood that she lived through. "Come here, Lydia." He said, his voice warm. He patted a space in the ground beside him, so that he sat in the middle of Lydia and Serche. Two different beings, sitting fireside by a man from a different world.

"Hello, did you sleep well?" He asked, gazing into her eyes. Lydia couldn't hold the gaze, dropping her eyes to the ground as she sat beside him, a huge smile belying her bashfulness.

"I just bet you're asking her if she slept well, aren't you?" Trasnu mockingly interjected, "Young man, they're all the same. Let me tell you, I doubt anyone would sleep badly with the kind of loving you gave her the past night."

It was Aaron's turn to blush, "Shut up, Trasnu." He said, much to the old man's delight. "This old dog is Trasnu. He's a lecher but he seems to be kind, and he seems to be a really good hunter." Aaron introduced him to Lydia, acting as go-between to the two different groups.

"Hello, Trasnu" Lydia greeted uncertainly, her eyes still full of cautious wonder. She pressed herself to Aaron's left a little more than necessary.

"It is an honor to meet one with the blood of the dusk as yourself." Trasnu said, suddenly turning somber, "May the Spirit of Creation bless this meeting."

"May the Spirit of Creation bless the meeting of day and dusk." Serche intoned.

The whole greeting was said with a ritualistic gravity that Aaron couldn't bring himself to ask what it meant. Even Lydia seemed surprised, adding to her confusion now that the two creatures are bowing at her. "Uh, I- what's happening?" She stammered.

"Oh! She said she doesn't know what's happening." He turned to the beastmen, "It's quite inconvenient that you all don't speak the same language, isn't it?" Aaron turned to Lydia and translated the greetings for her as best as he could, and although the formality of it all was diminished Lydia still appeared suitably overwhelmed by the importance given to her.

"Oh, no! I'm just a half -- well, I'm not even very sure. I could be quarter-demon, I grew up without my family."

The two beastmen were sympathetic after Aaron translated. "Nevertheless, it is an honor. Perhaps you don't realize it, but your kind, lady, is becoming extremely rare. At least in our parts of the world.

"Well, it certainly does look like we all have a hell of a lot of stories to tell each other." Trasnu nodded decisively. He handed everyone a fruit to nibble on, Aaron marveling at the almost unconscious drive to take care of others. "Well, I'll begin."

Aaron listened in marvel at the old hunter's tale. He was a gifted story teller, his voice immediately dropping down to the grave, sober tone of credibility, his words ritual-like in the sing song cadence he uttered them. Perhaps a skill he honed through countless campfires much like this one, with his own people gathered together hanging on his every word.

Trasnu told a tale of the Sky Treader Clan -- a major Clan in the Kin, also called the People of the Forest for their seeking refuge within the deepest parts Great Forest after the Great War of Races. Their Clan had made for themselves several large villages high up in the great trees, in the highest parts of the Shield Mountains -- which he learned, after an embarrassing interruption, was the mountain range that separated two halves of the continent that they are in.

Their Clan was fascinating to learn about; numbering a few hundred-strong, predominantly composed of the Rakan Tribe, which he surmised were the wolf-people. Perhaps the most interesting thing about them was their architecture; they made their entire village at the top of the highest trees in the region, the process apparently aided and amplified by spirit-magic, their whole lives lived high up above everything else. Trasnu said that depending on the weather, you could "See the sunset and the moon rise at the same time, with the pale, purple wash of undecided sky in between."

This interested Aaron immensely, and questions immediately exploded in his brain like so much blooming fireworks. He had to physically hold his mouth from popping questions one after another to examine the impossibility presented to him. What do they eat? How often do they go down to land -- surely they do? What about water? But his active mind was stilled by Trasnu's next words.