Shroud of Lies

Chapter 4

"Oooh! Look at the way the sun glistens on the leaves of that one!" Scrapper enthusiastically called.

"It's just another tree." Xolt grumbled, still trying to figure out how to ditch her after the hundredth tree she had happily exclaimed about how pretty it was.

"But this one's got pointy leaves, and that one has round ones, and that one there has pricklies! They are all so different!" she exclaimed.

"Would you please just shut up about the trees already!" Xolt growled.

Scrapper's ears drooped for a second as she said, "But look at that one! It's all red and sticky! Hey, do you think that's blood?"

Xolt stopped dead in his tracks and turned and glared at her furiously.

"No, I'm serious!" She said, jumping up and down and pointing. "That one really has blood on it! And that one and that one over there! And there's blood on the ground too! It's bloody everywhere!"

"I don't care!" Xolt snarled, putting his hand on his scabbard where his new sword lay. He turned and continued walking forwards through the forest.

"It's on your shoe too." Scrapper whispered under her breath, rolling her eyes.

"WHAT?" Xolt roared, thinking she had insulted him. She pointed at his foot and he looked down at the sticky red fluid staining his boot. He froze and stared down in shock.
'What is it?" Scrapper asked.

"No!" Xolt said, stooping down and examining the crimson trail.

"No what? Is something wrong?" she asked in curiosity.

"I don't want to talk about it. It's just...this reminds me so much of someone." Xolt said solemnly.

"Whoah, what's with the sudden change in mood? Does this have something to do with this Sheeva or Sheena person you were yelling about earlier?" she replied

"DON'T YOU EVER MENTION HER NAME AGAIN!" Xolt yelled, electricity crackling furiously in his hands.

"Okay, whatever. Was she hot?" Scrapper said, ducking as his fist hurtled towards her face. "Look, I let people try to hit me for a living. If it makes you feel any better, no matter what you're gonna' fail."

"She was a DRAGON you imbecile!"

"Alright, so there never was any competition." Scrapper said matter of factly.

"What?"

"Nothing nevermind." She said.

Xolt shot her another piercing glare.

"Y'know, if looks could kill I'd be flat on the floor by now." She nonchalantly replied.

"Shut up!"

"Shouldn't we go see where this blood trail is leading? It's pretty fresh. If there's any luck maybe it's something we could skin and sell its carcass." Scrapper said, directing his attention back to the blood trail. Xolt sighed and walked forward a bit.

"Hey look! Whatever it is, it's pretty big!" Scrapper exclaimed, pointing towards a large something that was covered in blood. She ran up to it and looked at the thing.
"It's still breathing!" she yelped in surprise.

"It's already gone. There's nothing we can do to help it." Xolt grumbled.

Scrapper grabbed a stick and poked it in the side, jumping back in alarm as she felt a wave of something rushing through her body.

"It...it zapped me!" she exclaimed. Xolt looked at her unamused.

"Can you stop playing with dead things." he groaned. She shrugged and looked at her hands, realizing that all of her fur was standing on end. "Huh, that's interesting." she said as she tried to smooth her fur.