Mayu stood there, her heart accelerating as she desperately tried to stay calm. It wasn't working. There were centaurs surrounding her, actual fricking centaurs! And they all wanted to kill her and the group she was with. What was she supposed to do...
"Ugh, why is no one complaining? This is so boring! I was hoping I'd get to make fun of someone..." Sunibe complained, hanging upside down from her staff. "I mean, I understand everyone else is probably used to these things because of the war, but I thought at least Mayu might complain if only just a little!"
They were all walking in the middle of the woods. Though to Mayu, it might as well have been a jungle. Huge trees as big as, maybe sometimes even bigger than the Old Growth Redwood Trees back home, which stand at around 380 feet tall, and live to be around 2,000 years old. Mayu was almost certain that the trees here were even older, which really impressed her. Without even looking at Sunibe, she answered.
"Says the very person who hasn't stopped complaining since we started," she rolled her eyes. "And why was I the only one you thought would complain? Chidum- Actually, never mind, I completely understand why."
Chidum chuckled.
"You think me a complaint repellant?" He asked.
The others in the group chuckled.
"Ah, no... That's not what I meant." Mayu said awkwardly.
"Oh, I see..."
Only Sunibe noticed the tiny smirk Chidum was wearing. He was messing with her. Now that was the kind of person Sunibe liked! People who enjoyed messing with others. She grinned.
There was a long awkward silence until Sunibe broke it.
"I SWEAR, you two can be really awkward." She said, sticking her head in between the two, staring at Mayu from behind. She turned her head to Chidum, trying to play along. "And how could you think she said you were complaint repellant? I mean honestly!"
Suddenly, Mayu's foot caught on a tree root, tangling, and sending her forward. She quickly and sharply tugged at her foot, getting it loose, but she had already lost her balance. Lurching forward, she put her loose right foot and right arm forward, as if that would catch her, when- she felt someone grabbing her left arm. Looking back, she saw Chidum.
"Uhm, thanks..." Mayu said, apologetically.
She turned a little red with embarrassment.
"Ooh, look who's embarrassed!" Sunibe wriggled her eyebrows mischievously, grinning.
She was still gliding along effortlessly on her staff. Mayu didn't even react. She was staring at the trees again. They were huge!
"Aww, you're no fun!" Sunibe complained.
Chidum ignored her and stayed behind a bit to walk with the slow-paced in-awe Mayu. Leaning in, he whispered in her ear.
"You will want to look around more. It is not only just the trees that are nice."
He was right. There were many different kinds of trees. The tall redwood-like ones, the small bush sized wonders, no... Even smaller than that. And they looked fully grown, too! How could they be that small? Looking a little closer, she noticed some of the smaller details. Like for example, all the creatures in the forest. There were all kinds of different bugs and insects that she had never seen before! She spotted many little ones that reminded her of a mini elephant, even though they were so different in appearance.
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Mayu started noticing that the elephant-like bugs were flying, running and stomping around close to the bush sized trees enthusiastically. She stared at them, puzzled. What was that about?
She was suddenly aware of a strange humming noise in her ears. At first, she thought it was the hum of the forest breathing all around her. It sounded odd, but she had actually heard it a few times before in nature back home. Well, more like felt it. Though Zoe had always been quite open, aware and wise. Especially with Mayu. It was something that had always amazed her. She remembered the time Zoe had first told her about the breath of the forest. She hadn't believed her at first. Even though Mayu's parents were quite on the hippy side, Zoe, whose mother she had met a long time ago and didn't seem all that hippy-like at all, was much more hippy than her. What was up with her, anyways? She never seemed to smile, and Mayu hadn't seen her in years.
Mayu was suddenly snapped out of her thoughts as the humming got louder and started to physically vibrate in her body. She stopped walking.
"What is that?" She asked.
"What is what, in particular?" Chidum asked, turning his head to her.
"You know, the humming noise and vibration! You don't feel them?" She asked confused.
Chidum stopped walking, closed his eyes and tried to perceive it. After a few moments, he opened his eyes, cocked his head confused, and spoke.
"No, I do not seem to be perceiving them.'"
Mayu was about to answer, but a bright flash of white light suddenly blinded her.
"What the hell?!" She shouted.
She let out a loud "OOMPH" as she felt someone kick her hard in the stomach, making her fly backwards and hit a nearby tree. As she struggled to get up, she felt someone grab her throat and start squeezing it.
"Wh-What?" Mayu choked.
She struggled against this person's iron grip and felt her consciousness fading away. Desperate, she tried to swing a punch and kick their crotch as hard as she possibly could, but... They didn't land. Neither one of her attempts to attack them landed. It was almost as if they... sunk through. It was hard to see because of the bright white light, and she was losing consciousness fast. The bright light started to fade away, and was replaced by a thick misty fog you couldn't see through at all.
"S-Stop." She choked out.
Nothing. Of course they wouldn't stop. Who ever heard of someone stopping their attack just because you asked them to?
'Please stop, sir, you're chocking me!'
'Oh, okay. Sure then, sorry about attacking you, miss.'
Most. Unrealistic. Thing. Ever.
She thought of Chidum. What happened to him? He was probably worried. Come to think of it, where were any of them? With how powerful Sunibe was, she should have saved her by now, if Chidum hadn't already. Mayu felt very weak, and it felt as though her lungs were bursting. She had many questions swirling around in her head.
What's going on? Who is this person attacking me? What was Zoe doing when I caught her at the portal?
She could go on for a little while more, but her air was running out, and her consciousness was slipping.
"D-Dammit..." She managed to say before everything went black.
