Rise of The Fallen

-Kora-

The sound of birds chirping stirred me awake as light peeked through the treetops, unceremoniously shining right into my eyes.

Groaning, I struggled to lift my arm, doing my best to block the light from blinding me.

A light breeze brushed over the tree, making the leaves and branches sway in a calming rhythm. My surroundings seemed so peaceful, and the sun…the sun felt so warm. Slowly reaching up towards the sky, I imagined grasping that warmth in the palm of my hand.

Eventually, I dropped my arm back to my side and closed my eyes, replaying memories of sleeping in the cold, cramped space of my apartment. Or sometimes even in the alleyways on Krosa. So many times I had to sleep on the streets, huddled up in a ball with nothing but the clothes on my back. Even the days I did sleep inside, it was in a musky room that smelled of cigarette smoke and piss. I was always alone and uncertain of my future.

I never knew if things would get better, if I would have a stroke of luck and get out of that hellhole for good, or if I would fall deeper into its pits, to never see the sunlight again.

I relaxed on the soft ground, relishing the warm, fresh air, and the openness of the world around me. For the first time since I’d arrived on this dreadful planet, I finally felt something other than misery.

As my eyes slowly adjusted to the brightness, I became all too aware of how exhausted and heavy my body felt, not to mention sore.

Last night, I thought for sure I was a goner. The wounds I’d sustained from fighting that saber-cat were anything but mild. And now that I was thinking about it, my arm, shoulder and stomach were throbbing in pain, a testament to the brutality I’d endured.

How am I still alive?

Afraid to move and injure myself further, I just laid there. Probably not the best decision, given that I’d been hunted last night in this very forest, but I hardly had the willpower to move my arm, let alone my body. What was I going to do, drag myself back home?

Besides, I wasn’t sure if I was grateful to be alive, or if I wanted to cuss out whatever deity thought it would be funny to not put me out of my misery.

Sighing, I closed my eyes to rest a bit longer, mustering the strength to give myself a half-assed pep talk. I needed to get up, to pull myself together if I didn’t want to be some creepy alien creature’s lunch; I’d almost been another’s dinner.

Moving was going to hurt like a bitch but, it was better than laying here, waiting to die.

Taking a deep breath, I slowly moved my injured arm, lifting it up to look at it. To my utter surprise, the pain wasn’t as bad as I expected. Sure, it still hurt but I wasn’t on the verge of tears just from moving around. Feeling a bit more confident, I tried pushing myself up into a sitting position, careful of my wounds.

Expecting searing, nauseating pain, I was quite baffled by how dull the pain actually was. So baffled, in fact, that it took me a solid five minutes to realize my clothes were missing and I was covered in moss and giant leaves. I was also lying next to a pond of some sort, something I’d hadn’t come across yet in all of my months traversing the forest.

What the hell?

I didn’t get the chance to even think about my strange predicament before something drew my attention away.

Leaves crunched from a few feet beside me, and I froze, eyes widening in fear and my heart clenching painfully.

Slowly, I turned my head to look in that direction, afraid that if I moved too fast I’d attract whatever predator was stalking me. I’d killed the saber-cat that had attacked me, but what if they traveled in pairs? Or packs, like wolves did? Was I about to be devoured by the dead cat’s family?

Bushes rustled and some ferns were pushed aside. And then, out of the darkness, a large dark figure with black horns and a very, very long, sharp bladed tail emerged, prowling from the treeline.

It was a native…the same one that had chased me days ago while I’d gone hunting. I gulped, planting my hands on the ground. My body ached, but that wasn’t going to stop me from getting the hell out of here if he came towards me.

Deadly silver eyes locked onto me and his entire body stiffened as he stopped in his tracks, surprise crossing his features and mirroring my own.

My heart skipped a beat, some of my fear abating as my eyes shamelessly took in the sight of the beastly male before me. His horns were curved back and upwards going against the flow of long dark hair that seemed to reach past his shoulders. A few strands were adorned with beads and feathers that hung over his left shoulder, drawing my eyes to a dark broad chest littered with scars that trailed down to his sinewy abs.

His muscular arms were at his sides, his hand keeping a tight grip on a rucksack that hung low, nearly touching the ground by his feet, and containing who knew what inside. My eyes involuntarily trailed even further down, grazing over the leather and fur loincloth covering his groin, no doubt hiding another monster between his muscled thighs.

The bladed tail attached to this massive native flicked around behind him in what I assumed was aggravation as we started each other down. He dropped the heavy sack he was carrying, taking a step toward me, his muscles rippling as he stopped again.

Just like that, my fear returned in full force, my mind screaming at me to run while my body felt a stirring that had nothing to do with being afraid at all.

I swallowed hard, silently cursing under my breath. “Fuck me.”

-Elazar-

I stared at the small female, a bit startled.

She was already awake?

This was quite unexpected. I assumed she would have slept longer considering the condition she was in when I left her this morning to gather supplies to help in her recovery.

This area was isolated and safe from most creatures due to the plants growing here. The fumes the plants secreted into the air irritated the senses. Most dangerous creatures tended to stay away from this area, so I hadn’t been worried about leaving her unattended.

It would have been bad had she decided to wander off in her current state, but I had come back just in time. Now, the real issue was going to be keeping her calm so she didn’t panic and try to run away, resulting in her reopening her wounds.

Even standing a good few strides away, it was easy to see that she was frightened by my appearance. Her entire body was tense, her eyes shifting over me and around me, taking in her surroundings.

She looked ready to bolt.

I stayed as still as possible, not wanting to spook her further..

I need to figure out a way to calm her down without–

In the blink of an eye, the female stumbled to her feet, pivoting slowly away from the healing pool and toward the opposite direction before she began limping away.

Faux! She’s trying to run!? Why is she so skittish!?

Launching myself forward, I grabbed a hold of her uninjured arm and, in a spur of the moment decision, wrapped my other arm around her front to keep from aggravating her wounded stomach as I pulled her back toward the pool. In doing so, I accidentally cupped her breast, and she gasped in outrage, her body practically vibrating from my touch.

“Relax,” I breathed in her ear.

My actions seemed to only trigger her. She shrieked and flailed in my hold until she slammed her elbow into my chin, the sharp jab nearly making me lose my grip. Ignoring the blunt attack, I spoke again, trying to get the human to listen.

“Stop! I do not wish to harm you!”

She continued to struggle in my grasp, my words falling on deaf ears. She shouted aggressively in a different language while kicking desperately behind her. Her foot connected with my calf, and when I hissed in pain, she kicked me again. Harder. The little human lashed out at me repeatedly, her aim venturing higher until she nailed my upper thigh, nearly hitting me in the groin.

“Halt your thrashing!” I growled, my frustration mounting. Why couldn’t she see that I was only trying to protect her?

Releasing her arm, I attempted to grab her leg to prevent her from hitting me between the legs. Unfortunately, I was not prepared for what she did next.

Reaching up with her now freed hand, she took a firm hold of one of my horns, sending a jolt of pleasure through my entire body. That pleasure, however, turned into a massive headache when she yanked down as hard as she could, causing me to stumble forward and lose my footing.

As we pitched forward, I released her leg, hoping to stabilize us. But there was nothing else to grab onto and the ground was nowhere to be found as we both plunged into the small pool with a large splash.