Darren's Game

9

Crawling through the brush wasn't what they thought they'd be doing, but it was the only way to avoid catching the eye of two beasts squaring off in a territory battle. And with Eadward making up the backend, he could see all of the fight happening just ten meters in front of them as they moved silently by.

A slender, petite dragon was keeping its head high, the rainbow frills sticking completely out on all sides of its head. It was angry, trying to find its own place to live in peace but the other large beast wasn't letting it slide. Violet blood was streaming out of a few places on the dragon, staining its chromatic skin with a permanent color. It was beaten up a bit already, but nowhere near dead.

The other creature was something mentioned to most people, but only seen in illustrated monster books: a hydra. This one only had four heads at the moment, but it was massive in size. Claws dug into the rock and soil below, some tainted with the blood of the reflective dragon, other sources of the blood being on two of its mouths and on its spiked tail. The main area it seemed to protect was the sizeable pond behind it, its main home when not out on the land.

"Keep moving," Brune whispered as he nudged Eadward's hand with his foot.

Eadward glanced ahead of him at Brune and nodded, doing his best to stay silent as he moved through. He was the largest and hardest to conceal, meaning he had to be very careful with what he did so the group wasn't caught by any of the large monsters. Even now, he took a precautionary step of covering all of his armor in the dirt to kill its shine.

They continued to move, hearing the hissing and snapping of jaws from each monster. Sometimes the flap of wings would fill the air, signifying them to be extra careful of getting aerial cover as well so the dragon didn't spot them. And while they focused a lot on avoiding being caught, this moment helped them to learn what sounds to listen out for when it came to any incoming danger.

The travel continued for what felt like another hour as they didn't stop until the fight was completely faded out of hearing range. Cassia was the first to stand up, slowly observing the area they had moved to, determining if it was safe or not to stand upright. Side to side, up, and even at the ground around them, no threats were in sight. Only small animals surrounded them, most peacefully enjoying their space. That was another note for them, small animals didn't like the large monsters, so any disappearance of them helped them to escape faster.

"This area is clear," Cassia spoke.

The others started to stand up, those with metal armor brushing off whatever camouflage they had put on themselves. Some started to spread out, observing the area for any other signifiers of threats. Nothing stood out, making them all feel more at ease.

"We're still continuing on, yes?" Paskalin asked the group as he adjusted the strap that held his sword on his back.

Vesta looked at the others and nodded his head along with them as many agreed in silence. "Yeah, but we need to find a direction to go... Anyone here good with directions?"

"How about I lead us to water?" Hilke spoke. 

"That's a good point," Cassia added. "We haven't had any water since we left yesterday. I'm already feeling fatigued from not drinking."

The rest quickly agreed and left Hilke to it. She motioned them to be completely silent, closing her eyes and focusing solely on her hearing. If there was one thing about elves, the odd shape of their ears did help to hone in sounds better.

The most prominent sound was of the birds, their calls being abrasive and loud. Different melodies came to Hilke's ears, some squawks and other strange bird screeches also polluting the air. But as she zoned out those noises came the less heard ones. The grass swayed and rubbed one another as the wind pushed past each blade, a soft tap of a branch hitting another branch, and even the sound of an acorn falling to the ground could be heard as Hilke focused in closer and closer to her goal.

And then she heard it: running water.

Her eyes opened back up and she only said one word as she pointed in the necessary direction. "There."

She led the way as they now hiked through the uneven ground, stepping over roots, walking around large rocks, and casually grabbing any fruits they saw along the way. Most living beings they saw were small animals, some were the strange hybrids they had noted lived peacefully with the normal small animals. 

"How far away was the sound?" Eadward asked as he continued to be the muscle at the back. He chose to be the first defense if anything did decide to strike them from behind.

"Quite a ways," Hilke stated. "But it is running water, nonetheless. We will hopefully be there by dusk."

It was far, but hopefully worth the trek. The group continued on together, eyes peeled for any other people or monsters. Better for the first rather than the latter for them.

---

After filling the waterskins with the freshly boiled water, Bore and Ladrel had left their small camp by the river. For now, they walked alongside the water, hoping to find any other animals that could become a meal, or possibly the aquatic organisms that helped with healing, the information provided in the books they kept on their persons. The area was calm and peaceful, something not expected by the two as they walked and observed their surroundings.

"It seems too calm, doesn't it?" Bore asked.

"Do you want to have this thing piggyback on you then?" Ladrel questioned as she pulled her hair away from the critter still attached to her. The fox-like bat still hadn't left and now clung to her back. It had taken much interest in trying to nibble on her hair, resulting in Ladrel taking out the braid and keeping it styled to be all in front.

Bore took a glance back at the two of them, noting how the animal sighed and rested its chin on Ladrel's shoulder. He smiled and shook his head. "Nah, you two are made for each other."

"I don't need this little one treating my hair like straw. It takes a long time to grow." Ladrel kept up from behind, hand always ready on the dagger for a quick attack if necessary.

But even with the little bit of annoyance from the monster-like baby, Ladrel was calm. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. She didn't sense any danger, and she felt nothing watching them.

At least, this creature sneaking up couldn't watch them.

It smelled them.