Page 14

14

Kroaicho

I needed to gain space again, my mind still whirling with all of the new concepts and strange ideas that have entered my life along with the best——and absolute worst——addition to my hoard I have ever made. The only reliable cure for anything is finding a new item to add to the stash, and so I tunneled into new territory.

It took a while to get through the final layer of rocks and I’m concerned I made too much noise for too long in my haste to replace this… odd feeling I have.

I listen carefully before slowly moving my head out of the tunnel I have dug so I can scan the surrounding forest. Hearing nothing, I move higher, becoming more confident until I realize that it’s far too quiet for the upper world.

My skin swirls purple and blue as I try to decide what to do. After the time spent with Olivia, I have nothing to show for my efforts today. Nothing amazing to add to my pitiful hoard. The need to expand it keeps me in place, undecided.

A crack of foliage behind me makes me whip around. There is a flash of blue. Some giant beast, I realize. Far too large to fit in my tunnel and so I don’t retreat right away. Then I notice the black figure on top of it as it runs toward me.

A human, I realize, though with pink hair instead of green like Olivia’s. From the look on the human’s face, the coloring doesn’t match zha’s mood any more than Olivia’s.

Then I see the weapon in zha’s hand, quickly being raised and hastily shift back into the hole I just dug.

“Wait!” the human yells out in the same language as Olivia. “Just give her up, you bastard .”

I pause for a moment, and then decide to keep moving. Soon after, there is a explosion of rock right where my head was and I start moving faster.

“You fucker . I am going to fucking kill—”

I don’t know what other threats the human makes. Zha’s voice is drowned out by the sound of rocks falling as I collapse the tunnel behind me. I cave in two more sections before I feel safe again.

They can’t get to my hoard.

I press my palms to the rough, damp stone beneath me, feeling the jagged edges scrape lightly against the softer undersides of my fingers. The cave yawns ahead, darker now, the further I push into it. The air is thick with an acrid tang, and it sticks to my skin, my nostrils flaring as I take another cautious breath.

I shift my weight to all six limbs, keeping my longer arms poised, fingers flexing unconsciously. My senses sharpen, catching the scent again—something unsettling, primal, buried beneath the mineral staleness of the cave. It's been following me for a while now, this creeping dread.

Yet, despite it, I find my thoughts drifting elsewhere.

Olivia.

The thought of zha comes unbidden, and with it, the familiar irritation blooms within me. My skin flares a deep shade of purple, a brief flicker of color that I quickly smother. I should not be thinking of zha. My focus should be on the cave, on potential treasures, not on the strange human who seems to have lodged in my life with reckless abandon.

But even as I try to force my attention back to the task at hand, Olivia's image lingers, zha's sudden mood swings flashing in my memory. One moment compliant, the next, yelling. A zhasie is not meant to endure such volatility. We evolved to thrive on efficiency, unburdened by complex emotions or illogical attachments. One zhann and one zhannel, not whatever it is that has become of my hoard. Self-sufficiency is our legacy, honed through countless cycles of evolution.

So why do I feel this? Why does the very thought of leaving zha alone in the cave claw at my mind, digging deeper into my consciousness as if it were some vital, primal urge? I have never feared losing any one item of my hoard as much as this moment.

It isn’t right.

I let out a low, frustrated click, my tusks pressing against the inside of my lips. This… nonsense… is starting to terrify me. There's no reason—none at all—for me to be concerned about Olivia. It's illogical. Ridiculous .

I pause for a moment, settling back on my hind limbs, using one of my upper arms to rub the back of my neck, easing the tension. I can't afford to lose focus, not now. The further I stray from the area of the cave that I've claimed, the more dangerous it becomes. I should be worrying about myself, not the human. Yet, despite myself, I can't help but acknowledge the truth gnawing at me: Olivia's survival instincts leave much to be desired.

My skin shifts, this time tinged faintly red with the memory of zha’s last attempted escape—if one could even call it that. The silly thing had barely made it anywhere, collapsing in exhaustion mere moments from a treacherous pitfall. The image of zha sprawled on the cave floor, oblivious to the danger around zha, flares in my mind, and I suppress a shudder.

I force myself to move again, walking deeper into the cave system, using the rhythmic thud of my limbs against the stone to drown out the persistent thoughts of Olivia. My focus sharpens as I move further into unfamiliar territory, and soon, the walls around me shift, revealing a new portion of the cave.

The crystals catch my attention immediately.

I halt, momentarily taken aback by their gleaming surface, their fractal patterns capturing what little light seeps into this part of the cave. They're made from a dense, crystalline rock, something I haven't encountered in this system before. I reach out with one of my larger hands, my fingers grazing the cool surface. It's beautiful. Rare. Worthy of my hoard.

They must have been here for… eons. To capture the time represented by their growth fills me with a thrill.

For a moment, I allow myself the distraction. I crouch lower, examining the intricate structure of the crystal, and the way it refracts light into subtle colors. I decided I must have it. With renewed determination, I press all four of my forelimbs against the stone and attempt to pry the crystals free. The rock resists, solid and unmoving beneath my strength.

They are difficult to break and it impresses me. Makes me even more determined to have something so unique for my hoard.

I chitter in frustration, but then, a thought crosses my mind. I glance around, and a few paces away, a loose stone catches my eye. I pick it up, testing its weight in my hand before swinging it down with force against the crystal. The impact sends vibrations through my limbs, but the crystal chips away, just as I hoped.

Pleased, I settle into a rhythm. The steady sound of stone striking stone echoes in the chamber, and over time, my pile grows. I gather each chunk of crystal carefully, arranging them in a neat pile by my side. My thoughts, thankfully, remain focused on the task for once, the satisfaction of adding to my collection outweighing any lingering concerns.

The story of how hard I had to work is adding such a pleasing layer to the crystals. They will be a perfect addition to my collection of treasures.

I don't notice the shift in the air at first. It's subtle, just a tingling at the base of my neck, a sense of something… off. My skin shifts uneasily, flashing pale blue. I pause, my body instinctively tensing, my ears straining for any unfamiliar sound.

Then I hear it.

The low, almost inaudible growl—followed by the sharp clack of something moving swiftly behind me.

Instinct takes over.

I throw myself to the side, my muscles coiling as I leap just in time to avoid the snapping jaws that close on the air where my neck had been moments before.

I twist in midair, landing on all six limbs, and skitter backward, my heart pounding in my chest. My skin flashes violently purple, tusks bared in an instinctive display of threat.

The creatures step into the dim light.

There are a dozen of them, sleek and muscular, their dark fur blending seamlessly into the shadows of the cave. Their eyes glow a harsh amber, devoid of pupils or whites, their narrow, slitted gazes fixed on me with predatory intent. Their claws scrape against the stone as they prowl forward, the slime that drips from their jagged teeth casting an eerie glow across their maw.

They don’t look like cave creatures, which means we must be close to the surface.

My first thought is how unsettling they look. Not quite recognizable, but close enough to remind me of the predators of my home world—only more vicious, more… wrong.

I count them quickly, assessing the threat. There are too many of them to face head-on, but they seem uninterested in the crystals strewn across the floor. Their attention is solely on me.

Good.

I lower myself closer to the ground, my limbs bending as I prepare for the next strike. The room narrows here, giving me little room to maneuver, but it also limits their ability to flank me. I bare my tusks again, hoping to intimidate them, though I doubt they'll be so easily cowed.

The air hums with tension.

One of the creatures, larger than the rest, lets out a growl that reverberates through the cave, the others following suit as if responding to an unspoken command. I watch their muscles coil, readying for the attack.

My heart races, blood pounding in my ears as I tense for the inevitable.

I can't afford to lose here. I need to get back to Olivia. The thought of her, alone and defenseless, spurs me into action.

The tension in the air is unbearable. I can feel the sharp prickling at the base of my neck as the creatures circle me, eyes locked, muscles coiling, ready to strike. The acrid stench of the cave mingles with the smell of their bioluminescent slime, and I hiss lowly, positioning myself to minimize any chance of being flanked. My fingers flex against the stone floor as I crouch, keeping my body low, and prepared.

With a final snarl, I brace myself on all six limbs, ready for whatever comes next.

And then, they lunge.

It happens in a blur. The largest one lunges, its body cutting through the air with frightening speed, maw snapping with a wet, sickening sound. I barely twist out of the way, but not before it grazes one of my rear limbs. I chitter in response, my skin flaring violet with anger as pain shoots through me. No time to dwell on it. Another one is upon me, slashing with jagged claws that glisten with the same eerie glow. I manage to catch its limb with two of my upper arms, but the strength behind its strike surprises me, nearly knocking me off balance.

My tusks press hard against the insides of my lips as I snarl, thrusting the creature away with a violent push. It skids across the stone, but more are already closing in. There's no stopping them now. The fight has erupted in full force, and I am at the center of it.

I swing with one of my arms, catching one of the smaller beasts mid-leap, sending it crashing into the cave wall with a satisfying crunch. The others pause for a fraction of a second, assessing my strength, but they don't relent. They come at me from all sides now, claws flashing, fangs bared, moving in a coordinated attack. I twist and spin, lashing out with all of my limbs, trying to keep them at bay, but there are too many of them. Each time I fend one off, another sinks its claws into my flesh, leaving burning gashes along my limbs and torso.

My body surges with pain, but I push through it. Zhasie are resilient , I remind myself, and I've faced worse than this. I slam my forelimbs down onto one of the creatures that gets too close, crushing it beneath my weight with a sickening crack. I hiss in satisfaction, but there's no time to celebrate. Another creature leaps at my back, and I barely manage to throw it off before it can sink its fangs into my neck. My skin shifts to a dark, seething purple. Irritation and frustration course through me as I struggle to keep my focus.

One of them is particularly fast. It darts between my limbs, slicing at my underbelly with razor-sharp claws. I howl, the sound more of a high-pitched hiss than a growl, and twist my body, trying to catch it, but it's already gone, vanishing into the shadows before I can retaliate. My middle section flares with a dull, throbbing pain where the claws left their mark, and I know I've taken damage that won't easily heal.

I rear up on my hind limbs, towering above the pack, and let out a screeching hiss, hoping to intimidate them, but they are unrelenting. Their growls echo in the cave, low and guttural, as they prepare for another coordinated strike.

The leader—larger, more menacing than the others—steps forward again, its amber eyes locked onto mine. It lunges, faster than I expect, and its claws rake across my chest. I roar, swinging one of my massive arms in retaliation, catching it across the face and sending it sprawling. But the effort costs me. Another beast leaps onto my back, claws digging deep into my flesh.

I screech and thrash, managing to throw it off, but not before it tears a chunk of my skin away. My whole body burns with pain, but there's no time to stop. I can feel my strength waning, my movements slowing, and the creatures know it. They're circling tighter now, sensing victory.

I slam my forelimbs down again, sending a shockwave through the ground that makes the creatures pause for a moment, but it's only temporary. They're back at me in an instant, their claws and fangs a blur of motion as they tear into my flesh. I manage to crush two more, my powerful limbs splintering bone and flesh beneath my weight, but it's not enough. There are too many.

My vision blurs as another swipe catches me across the side of my head, sending me reeling. I stumble, my limbs buckling beneath me, and for a moment, I think I'm going to fall. But I can't. I won't. I have to get back to Olivia. The thought drives me forward, even as my body screams in protest.

With a final, desperate surge of strength, I throw myself into the thick of them, my arms flailing, lower limbs kicking, tusks bared in a primal display of fury, my skin casting a bright purple glow on the cave walls around us. I manage to knock several of them away, but not without taking more hits. My skin flashes red now, fear and desperation mixing with the burning pain that courses through me.

Then, in the midst of the chaos, something shifts. The creatures pause, their heads turning as one, ears pricked. I don't know what they sense, but they suddenly retreat, disappearing into the shadows as quickly as they came. I'm left alone, panting, blood dripping from a dozen wounds, my body trembling from the exertion.

I drop to all six limbs, the adrenaline fading and the full weight of my injuries hitting me at once. I'm not dead, but I'm close. My skin flickers a dull, exhausted orange for a moment before settling into a deeper purple. I glance around the cave, my vision still hazy. The crystals… my hoard… they're scattered across the floor, a glittering reminder of why I came here in the first place. But I can't take them with me now. Not like this.

I know I can't make the journey back to Olivia in this state. Even if I could, there's no guarantee those creatures won't come back. I need to heal, and quickly. I scan the cave, looking for a solution, and my gaze settles on a loose patch of ground near the far wall. It's soft enough.

Without hesitation, I begin to dig, using my powerful limbs to tear into the ground, creating a large enough hole to accommodate both myself and my treasures. My movements are sluggish, each stroke of my arms sending sharp jolts of pain through my body, but I don't stop. I can't.

Eventually, the hole is deep enough. I gather the crystals—what little I managed to collect—and place them inside, careful not to damage them further. Then, with a groan of pain, I crawl into the hole beside them. My body protests every movement, but I force myself to curl up tightly, pulling some of the loose soil over myself and the crystals.

The darkness closes in around me, and for a moment, I wonder if I'll wake up again. My wounds are severe, and though my body will heal, it will take time. Time that I might not have if those creatures return.

But there's nothing more I can do now. I close my eyes, my body sinking deeper into the ground, and allow myself to drift into a deep, healing sleep. My skin flickers one last time, a faint pulse of red fading into black as I let the darkness take me.