\|/ Turn 53, midlight
I decided to call the being a scavenger. Said scavenger decided that sleeping right next to our camp is a good idea.
I was the first to wake up this turn, the warmth making Mik pretty slow in every regard. To my surprise, it was even warmer than last turn, meaning Mik would barely function.
I slowly woke up as usual, yawning and stretching. Until I tasted the scavenger.
No way that's from last turn.
I shot up, grabbing Mik's hatchet. Looking around, I saw that it had taken the outer layer from the sweetfruit again.
I stopped for a moment, thinking about whether I should wake up Mik or not. I decided not to, fearing Mik would overexert itself from panic immediately, and I was capable enough of scaring the scavenger away.
I tasted the air intensely, trying to figure out the direction the scavenger was in. After a few moments, I figured it out and snuck left of where Mik and I camped.
Finding the scavenger would be incredibly difficult, were it not so large. I saw only one bush, about 7 lengths away, that would be able to hide it. I approached it without making so much as a sound. When I got closer, I saw that my presumption was correct, the bush overbearingly tasting of the scavenger.
I took a deep breath, raising the hatchet.
I moved the leaves out of the way, ready to fight for my life.
Only to find an empty imprint on the ground below.
"Phew..." I breathed out.
I lowered the hatchet, inspecting the inside of the bush.
There was a large, circular imprint inside, with a wet spot on the ground. Aside from the large imprint, I noted that large parts of the bush were disturbed, including bent branches facing away from our camp.
I carefully put my hand on the wet spot. When I brought it up, I felt that my scales were sticky.
"Oh, we're just feeding you, aren't we?" I scoffed. The scavenger probably loved the fact that we couldn't eat the outer layer of the sweetfruits.
Good thing you taste even louder than Mik, though…
I debated what I could do about the scavenger and its new sleeping spot, but I couldn't come up with any plan. My only idea was to make some kind of trap, but at that size, it would take forever and I'd need Mik's help. In the end, I decided to just go and wait for Mik to wake up.
One thing bothered me immensely; whether I should even tell Mik about it in the first place or not.
I went back to Mik, putting the hatchet in the same spot it was before I picked it up, and sat down. I stared at the hull above me, begrudgingly debating what I should do.
"Ughhh…" I groaned silently, rubbing my head.
If I tell Mik, it'll get all paranoid…
…
But if I don't…
Would Mik find out on its own…?
Mik's species is obviously over-reliant on sight, that, if it were on Varanth, Mik would get tested for taste-blindness. I understood missing minor tastes or difference in tastes from mood, but not noticing the scavenger was there was something else.
It probably wouldn't.
But does that mean I should tell it…?
I lightly thumped the back of my head against the tree, wincing when my thorns awkwardly bent against the bark.
If Mik gets paranoid, it won't sleep until the problem is solved.
"Suns damn it." I breathed out, immediately checking if I accidentally woke Mik. It was still snoring.
'The problem.'
The scavenger, realistically, was hardly a problem at that point. I was certain it was a herbivore, and Mik would just make a major issue over it even existing near us.
A problem from nothing.
I looked at Mik again, it sleeping peacefully.
"I'm sorry." I whispered, my decision final.
I wouldn't tell it.
I hadn't kept a secret from Mik yet, and I loathed the idea itself, but Mik knowing about the scavenger would help no one.
I would keep an eye on it, and if it got a little too brave, step in. Mik would panic and build a canal between us and the scavenger or something equally excessive.
Having decided my course of action, I waited until Mik woke up.
Mik woke about a mark later, rubbing its already wet head.
"Heya" I smiled at it.
It tapped my tailend and slowly woke up in a similar way. I carefully watched whether Mik would notice the scavenger's still present taste, but no reaction came.
When it was properly awake, Mik opened its map and tapped "Metal".
I shook my head, opening my own journal and tapping the electric field. Mik tilted its head, asking something.
I wrote "Water" above the lines.
Mik looked at the nearly empty bowl and nodded, giving me its journal for safe keeping.
We got up, Mik taking the hatchet and bottle, while I took the bowl. Just as we started walking, Mik suddenly stopped.
I noticed a few lengths away, and jogged back to Mik.
"What's up?" I hissed.
Mik made a circular motion with its hands, asking about the fruit's outer layer.
Oh no
I panicked internally, thinking of an excuse. What followed was a wild array of gestures:
I mimicked Mik's sleeping (tongue out for dramatic effect, since it drool) and then I mimicked me throwing something gently. My tail twitched involuntarily as I made up the story.
Please don't ask where please don't ask where please don't ask where
To my utter relief, Mik just nodded, motioning forwards.
I turned around, leading it towards the valley. Lying to Mik made me feel ill.
Gathering water in the valley was relatively uneventful. I showed Mik how to crush and filter the grass while it sat in the shade, with me bringing the grass to it. One thing I found funny was Mik flinching every time the grass sparked or popped when I snapped some off.
Scaredy-not-scale I snickered to myself.
But when the bowl was almost full, I noticed just how red Mik's hands were, as opposed to the usual pale.
"Good?" I asked, tapping Mik's hands.
Mik nodded, rubbing them off the regular grass behind it. I noticed they were shaking.
Are you kidding me?
Mik acting like it didn't mind, when it was obviously being injured REALLY annoyed me. I huffed, setting the bowl off to the side and grabbing Mik's arm.
It complied with getting up after a tiny tug, and I brought it over to the electric field.
Letting go of Mik's arm, I took a handful of grass and snapped it off. It made the usual pop, accompanied by a small arc.
Mik took a step back.
…
"You can't be serious!" I hissed loudly, tapping the grass.
Mik took another step back.
I sighed deeply, calming myself. I was being impatient, and Mik was being helpful.
I turned around, showing Mik another handful. I even put my left hand next to it, and the arc avoided it when I snapped more off, going through the path of least resistance.
"See? Hurts less than filtering it." I said, waving with the grass in my hands.
Mik slowly took some steps back. Then, it turned around and started running away.
"Hey! Come back here!"
I sprinted after it.
I struggled to catch up, but it took only a few moments until Mik was panting and gasping for air. It was too warm for Mik to be doing this.
I caught it, grabbing its arm and leading it back to the grass. The whole scene gave the tiniest bit of determination regarding the scavenger.
When we were back at the grass, I placed Mik's hand on it and waited expectantly off to the side.
Mik looked at me pleafully. I hit it with my tail against its leg.
"Come on, its not hard." I hissed.
A few moments later, seeing it couldn't escape trying it, Mik tugged at the grass without actually breaking it.
It looked back at me, raising it's hands and smiling innocently.
"Oh for-"
I took Mik hands and snapped a few blades before it could react.
Mik yelped once, tugging its hands back. I couldn't help but laugh at it.
That got Mik annoyed enough to go do it alone, until it managed to actually get over its fear.
After that, Mik was the one to bring me grass as I crushed and filtered it. I couldn't help but notice it still standing as far as possible while harvesting grass. I encouraged it as much as I could with cheerful hissing whenever it would bring me a new handful.
I filled the bottle in record time, though my hands were bloated and tingly by the end of it. Still, Mik's help was really nice, even if it made the air taste nervous.
When both the bowl and bottle were completely full, we went back to the camp.
We left the bowl at the camp and took a tiny break.
Mik started procuring another sphere for us to throw around to each other, but we had to go before Mik managed to finish it – the process including me half-dragging Mik away.
We went to the field with the metal scraps again. Mik was pretty slow due to the warmth at that point, so I had to slow down for it to keep pace.
When we got there about a mark later, Mik had to sit down from exertion; it looked like it had been on a devastating run, and not a slow walk.
I sighed deeply, pulling out Mik's journal and approaching it. I wrote:
"Mik stay, Maya metal."
Mik flailed its hand once and tried to get back up. I pushed it down lightly, insisting it rest.
What horrified me was when Mik actually completely fell down, hitting the back of its head against the tree.
"Sorrysorrysorry!" I hissed frantically, fumbling around it.
Mik groaned, closing its eyes and rubbing the back of its head. It took the journal and wrote "Mik rest", acting like I would push it again while smiling. I didn't find that funny in the slightest. I nodded, going to the field.
"Stupid, idiot Scale." I hissed to myself, kicking rocks and twigs on the ground as I picked up metal pieces and shards.
Pushing Mik, at this state. Really, Maya?
I felt like a big bully. Mik, the shadow…
…
No, not thinking about that. Mik. Mik's the only important one.
I tried focusing on the task at hand, but everything felt a bit muddied from my thoughts.
I was done about a mark later, holding a handful of scraps. There was also a pretty large piece, about the length of my tailtip, that seemed like it would function as a base for a small blade. I had to be very careful not to cut myself on the jagged edge while holding it, though.
I got back to Mik, who had fallen asleep in the shade.
"Miiik" I hissed melodically. No response.
"Miiik, we gotta go…"
Nothing.
Sighing, I gently put down the scraps and took Mik's water bottle from next to it.
As carefully as I possibly could, I let a few drops fall on Mik's not-snout.
Its face scrunched up, scaring me with a movement I hadn't seen before. Mik then opened its eyes, blinking rapidly.
"You alright?" I asked it. Mik didn't respond but looked back at me.
I handed it back its bottle and helped it get up. A moment later, I picked up the scraps and started guiding it back to the camp.
Mik was extremely wobbly while it walked. I offered my tail, which Mik took, but I didn't have the strength to help balance all of Mik with it, so I gave up on that notion a moment later.
Then, Mik put its hand on the top of my head.
I mentally stopped for a moment, confused on how to best swear at it.
But as I was about to start hissing about manners, I saw Mik's expression.
Its eyes were staring blankly in front of us. Mik's entire stature was that of tiredness, combined with the fact that its head growth was literally dripping water.
I sighed deeply, letting it use me as a cane, repositioning its hand so it was embedding itself on the thorns on the back of my head. My vision was partially blocked by a finger, but I wasn't going to yell at Mik for it.
We got back to the camp a bit later, with Mik immediately collapsing to the ground.
My neck ached from holding Mik up, but I was glad Mik made it at all. I left the scraps on the heap from last turn, removed Mik's hatchet and shirt, and let it sleep.
Mik has been asleep since then. I removed its shirt again to dry it off.
I have to go check whether the scavenger is here before I can do anything else, though.
It's not. The bush is empty, and the taste isn't there anymore. It's probably cooling off in the river or something.
I'll go gather some leaves and fungal vines while Mik is sleeping, so I can fix up the hatchet a bit. It looks dilapidated, and the last thing we need is for it to snap. I can't leave Mik alone, but I can't sit around, either.
Mental note: continuation of the book about how I licked Mik should be called: "How I was used as a cane by an alien."
I'll have an entire series by the time I get back to Varanth.
\|/ Turn 52, late dark
The scavenger is still sleeping next to our camp.
I spent the rest of midlight hovering around Mik while I worked.
I managed to reinforce the hatchet by gluing scraps to the end and to the handle. It was heavily improvised, but it should function a bit better and have a slightly lesser chance of chipping. The glue, extracted from leaves I could reach, evaporated in what felt like moments.
How would other Scale handle this warmth…? I wondered.
Aside from Vera, I hadn't seen many non-Thornkin in the arid domain, and the warmth here was about the same at this point.
Mik woke up about a mark past midlight.
We played our little word game again, and Mik seemed to be enjoying it, even if it was a bit scatterbrained. I was just waiting for it to cool down enough for Mik to be fully receptive, but that didn't happen for a while.
When Mik dozed off again, I decided to take the time to draw a somewhat detailed instruction list for making a knife from the scraps that were left. I ended up with a very rough design:
-The handle would be made from wood, which I'd have to ask Mik to properly chop up
-The largest piece of metal that I found would be the base, and I'd glue more scrap to reinforce it
-The handle would be connected to the blade by glue and fungal vines tightly wrapped around
All in all, I was happy with the drawing, despite it being a bit lobsided due to me using my tail as a ruler.
Definitely not signing this. I thought, forgetting it's in my own journal. Which is signed. By me.
After finishing the drawing, I really felt tired from all the work, so I just rested next to Mik, making sure it wasn't getting worse.
About two marks later, Mik was good enough to get up, though it was still blurry eyed from sleep.
I really felt bad for Mik; it looked more exhausted after sleeping.
"Let's cool you off in the river." I hissed, tapping "Food" on the map. Mik nodded, rubbing the water off the top of its head. Putting on its shirt, we started the trip.
The trek to the river was incredibly slow, with Mik trying very hard not to overwarm itself. At least I wasn't a cane again.
During the trip, I felt as if we were being watched. I didn't trust Mik with noticing the same thing, but there was no reason to stop yet.
Until the tiniest bit of wind blew an all too familiar taste to me.
I quickly pulled Mik aside and into a bush. It stumbled after me, completely surprised by the sudden change in direction. Mik opened its mouth to complain, but I quickly covered it before it could.
I didn't have to hold it for long, since we heard rustling on the path we were taking. Mik and I watched off from the side, with Mik grabbing and preparing its hatchet.
Slowly, the scavenger approached.
It had been following us… with its eyes closed.
What…?
It passed by the bush, not even noticing we weren't in front of it anymore.
Beyond intrigued, I slowly got out of the bush.
Mik whispered something behind me, but I gave it a hiss for it to keep quiet. I heard it following me as I silently hurried after the scavenger.
I quickly caught up, standing on the scavenger's right side. The scavenger looked even bigger from the side, since its tail was quite long. I stared in silent awe, trying not to hiss in excitement.
I'd never thought it would be so majestic from up close. Its cloak was light green, yes, but had a beautiful shine to it, some parts a gradient from dark green to light green. What kept me bewildered, though, were the scales.
I was right in noticing that they were proper scales. Not a cloak or something similar to scales, no, Actual, Sunsdamned, Scales. The entire evolutionary community would collectively faint if I could show them this fact. Trying not to get distracted by just the scales, I continued inspecting the beautiful creature up and down.
The next point of focus was its chitinous snout. I'd seen many of those from Tau beings, but this one was curved downwards at the end, giving it a distinct look. I had to physically prevent myself from patting it.
What kept me confused, however, was why it had been acting so weird.
Were you thinking about taking our scraps again?
The intelligence a being would need for that kind of conclusion impressed me more than anything else. The scavenger was smart. Maybe not tool usage or proper bond forming, but it knew how to observe and interpret our actions.
Which completely contrasted with the fact that it fell asleep while following us.
Why are you so… clumsy?
As I was deep in thought, something caught my attention. A glint above the scavenger.
Mik's hatchet.
"NOOO!" I hissed, pushing the scavenger away from me.
It stumbled, swerving onto Mik, who was on the opposite side.
The scavenger's eyes opened and immediately snapped to me. It hesitated for a moment, unsure of what was happening. It fled, almost hitting me with that tail, which I had to duck under.
I turned back to Mik, who was sprawling on the ground. I had sent the scavenger stumbling on it.
"Mik!" I hissed, running over to it.
Mik groaned and slowly sat up, holding its head with a hand. I looked for blood, though was relieved to find none.
But what made me stop were Mik's face and taste. They resembled only rage.
Mik forcefully took its journal out of my pocket, making me flinch. It opened the map.
Mik tapped… no, slammed "Food" on the map with the entirety of its hand, scrunching the paper up.
I stared silently, unsure of what to say.
Mik flipped to the next page, writing "FOOD" over the entire page. I opened my mouth, but I couldn't think of anything to say.
"I-"
…
I shook my head, silently staring at the ground.
I was ready for Mik to yell at me or even hit me. I wouldn't hold it against Mik, if it had.
But it didn't. I heard it walking away a few moments later.
I followed from a distance.
…
Why did I…
It's just an animal… We could've survived on it for turns…
Why was I suddenly feeling empathetic to a random animal on Tau?
Were too many features similar to Mik's and mine…?
I couldn't, for the life of me, figure out why I had done what I had done. It was reckless. It was stupid.
When I lied, was I protecting Mik, or the scavenger?
I didn't know the answer.
The rest of the turn felt like a blur. Mik didn't regard me in the slightest, not even when I found another sweetfruit under the bush. It was the last one that I spotted, even after digging all around the root. There wouldn't be any more.
We went back to the camp afterward. We didn't communicate in any way.
Darkness came, Mik made a campfire. It seemed to notice my repairs to the hatchet, inspecting it a bit, but didn't look at me. We split the fruit.
It tasted sour.
I watched Mik fall asleep, not having talked to me in marks. I could only cry.
Why do I keep ruining everything…
Why do I…
The scavenger's taste made me snap out of my loathing.
The damn scavenger's taste.
And I knew where it was.
I slowly got up, taking Mik's hatchet. I looked at myself in its reflection.
And saw her, smiling.
"This isn't for you." I whispered.
I turned around, heading towards the bush. It was almost completely dark, but the taste was so intense that I couldn't possibly miss it.
I breathed deeply, trying to keep focused, trying not to think about what I was about to do.
As I got closer, I felt another taste.
Sweetness.
Unbearable sweetness.
My legs froze. I felt like all the determination drained from my body in a moment.
I took a step to the left, looking around the bush.
And I saw the forsaken kin's eye.
It was staring at the bush, breathing deeply.
I felt nauseous. My head exploded in pain not only from the smell, but from the choice before me. I gripped the hatchet, my tail wrapping around my leg.
"Leave." I said aloud, my voice cracking. The eye didn't move.
"Get out of here!" I hissed.
The shadow's gaze turned to me.
My mind muddied. I couldn't stand it looking at me again. I lost all control.
I gripped the end of the hatchet and hurled it at the eye.
It flew through the air for a few moments. I felt as if time had slowed down.
With a thud, it hit the tree next to the shadow.
I wasn't aiming for the tree.
The eye stumbled backwards, staring at the hatchet. It looked back at me once.
And disappeared into the night without making so much as a sound.
I stood in the same spot, heaving from rage.
Without saying anything, I went over and pried the hatchet out of the tree, bringing it back to the camp. Mik was still breathing deeply, fast asleep.
I put the hatchet down. She was smiling wider.
And I took the sweetfruit outer layer, throwing it next to the bush.
And now I'm back here, next to Mik.
Always here.
Like the stubborn idiot I am.