Both travelers were stunned when the elder Mobling addressed them in their own language.
"Thank you. Please stand still; I'm almost finished," the old Mobling said, as he applied the last of the foul-smelling mixture to Nova's bruises.
"You... have you been able to talk all this time?" Katya asked, addressing the old Mobling.
The Mobling had been silent while treating the boy, communicating only with the other Moblings in their language, which had caused confusion and doubt.
"Yes, I understand human language, but I prefer not to use it," the old Mobling replied coldly as he finished applying the medicine and stood up.
"Get some sleep; even if the Alpha has given you the green light, you are still not welcome here." With that, he took his staff and walked away, leaving the couple with more questions than answers.
"This is a fascinating discovery. If Moblings understand and use human language, we could establish communication and cooperation between our societies. This could be a significant breakthrough for Synchro fauna. Maybe their DNA has been altered..." Before Katya could delve further into her excitement, she heard a deep snore from Nova.
By this time, Nova had fallen asleep during the girl's chatter. "you fool..." Katya muttered with annoyance, before turning back to her notebook to continue typing until she too fell asleep.
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The next day
The harmonious chirping of birds signaled the start of a new day.
Nova was the first to wake and found that his body was nearly 90% recovered. Aside from a few minor bruises, he felt so good that it was hard to believe the beating he had endured the day before. Even the wound on his forearm seemed to have miraculously healed.
"Was it the plants?" he wondered, recalling the ointment the elder Mobling had applied.
"I’ll have to thank him when I see him," he said with a smile, noticing Katya asleep beside him, her back turned.
Not wanting to disturb her, Nova quietly got up from the bed of leaves where he had been resting.
He spotted his backpack in a corner of the small tent and found his white hoodie, now stained with blood. Noting the state of his clothes, he opted for a black t-shirt and stepped outside the tepee.
The sun’s rays greeted him with intense brightness, forcing him to squint. After a few seconds, his eyes adjusted, revealing the vast terrain before him.
Inside what appeared to be a large natural cave was the Mobling Village, with cone-shaped teepees made of leather and wood. A large crater in the cave's ceiling let sunlight in, which, thanks to scattered quartz crystals, illuminated every corner of the space.
"This is impressive," he said, marveling at the sight of the Moblings living as a cohesive society.
"Uk ku," a small Mobling's voice caught his attention.
Turning, he saw a female Mobling with reddish skin, neck-length brown hair, a small leather dress, and a twig doll in her arms. The little girl looked up at him with curiosity.
"Kukuk," she said, gazing at him.
"Ah, hello?" Nova greeted with a smile, which was soon mirrored by the girl's. She approached him and gently tugged at his shirt, as if asking him to bend down.
Nova complied, bending to her level.
The girl smiled and touched his face, rubbing it as if trying to remove the strange color from his skin.
"Haha, I don’t have anything on my face; it’s just my natural color," Nova chuckled softly. Although he had no younger siblings in his previous life, he was never bothered by children.
"What’s your name?" he asked kindly, though the little Mobling didn’t seem to understand him.
"I'm Nova, Nooovaaa. What's your name?" Nova said, pointing to himself and then at the little girl.
At first, the girl seemed confused and even ignored him, focusing instead on his square teeth. She showed him her own, a row of pointed teeth.
"Wow, haha, what nice teeth," Nova chuckled, but just then a scream grabbed the little girl's attention.
"Ukkir kuku uk!" a female Mobling shouted, clearly annoyed.
The girl quickly released Nova's face and ran towards the woman, who seemed to be her mother. Nova assumed this was the case.
Once the girl was with her mother, the older woman took the hand that had touched Nova, spat on it, and wiped it with her dress while scolding her in a harsh tone. She then dragged her back to their tepee.
“I told you, you’re not welcome here,” the voice of the old Mobling from the previous night came from behind Nova.
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
"Ah, yes, I see..." Nova replied, turning to face the old Mobling.
"Anyway, we don't want to bother you. I’d like to thank the Alpha and leave with my friend so we won’t cause any more trouble," Nova said sincerely, not feeling upset or affected by the situation.
After all, he had initially viewed them as mere monsters, so he had no reason to feel bad about this.
“It would be best for everyone, but it’s up to the Alpha to decide. Follow me, I’ll take you to him,” the old Mobling said, gesturing with his hand.
They walked in silence through the village. Nova noticed other Moblings, ranging from green to reddish, observing him. Some looked confused, others seemed to recognize him from the previous day, and many averted their gaze, as if his presence was unwelcome.
"Is there a special reason for their behavior, or is it just because of yesterday?" Nova asked, driven by curiosity despite his acceptance of their differences.
"Humans are considered taboo for our people. The further away from our villages, the better. That’s why we always try to chase them away," the old Mobling replied, raising one of his large eyebrows and looking at Nova with an accusatory glance.
Nova kept his thoughts to himself, realizing he had completely misunderstood the Moblings. It wasn't just him; probably every human who had encountered them had succumbed to the prejudice of seeing them as mere animals.
Next time he encountered a member of the Synchro fauna, he would think twice before rushing to judgment. His perception had changed drastically since he had thought of them as ignorant monsters just the day before.
They finally reached the Alpha.
"UK UK UKUK!" The Alpha shouted excitedly upon seeing Nova and the old Mobling.
The Alpha, now without his usual mask, had his injured arm immobilized by a rudimentary sling made of leather and twigs. He stood within a quadrangle formed by four thick logs and ropes crafted from plants.
"The Alpha greets you and asks about your wounds," the old Mobling said to Nova.
The white-haired man was surprised by the animated reaction of the towering six-foot Mobling, who approached the part of the ring closest to them with a smile.
"Ah, I am well, Mr. Alpha. I appreciate you taking care of me and my friend," Nova said, making a small gesture of thanks. The older Mobling translated his words into the Mobling language.
Nova felt odd thanking someone who had beaten him, but at least the Alpha wasn’t forcing him to work like Angelo.
"Ukuk uk uku," the Alpha said cheerfully after hearing the translation. His words seemed to shock the Mobling holding the staff, who responded with visible concern.
The giant, however, was blunt in his reply, accompanied by an annoyed gesture.
"Is everything all right?" Nova asked, disturbed by the Alpha’s angry tone. The older Mobling sighed heavily.
"No, it’s not good. The Alpha says you don’t need to thank him. You showed great resilience during his blows yesterday, so he decided to give you the privilege of being his training partner. The other Moblings are knocked out with a single blow," the Mobling with the staff explained, surprising Nova.
He felt both praised and alarmed. "No, no, wait, you’ve got to be kidding. If he destroyed me yesterday, I’m not even a good warm-up," he said to the old Mobling, panic evident in his voice. Before he could continue, the Alpha walked to the center of the ring and waved for him to start the training.
"Tell him it’s a bad idea, please. I don’t want to be hit like that again... I could run away if you want," Nova pleaded desperately.
"It’s pointless. Pride and combat are crucial to our kind. If you refuse to be his partner, he’ll likely kill you along with the girl," the elder Mobling said, causing Nova’s face to fall in resignation, with a few tears welling up.
"I take it back; they are bloody bloodthirsty monsters..." Nova thought as he entered the ring with a resigned expression and walked to the center to begin training.
At that moment, several spectators arrived to watch the practice. They were some of the Moblings from the day before, accompanied by what seemed to be their friends.
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Two hours later
It took Katya two hours to reach the ring.
When she woke up and found Nova missing, she used the opportunity to explore part of the village. She made notes about the Moblings' behaviors and sketched some of them, though they often turned away or avoided her gaze when they noticed she was watching.
When she arrived at the ring, she was met with a scene reminiscent of the day before. Nova, once again covered in bruises, lay flat on his back on the ground.
“Nova, what the hell! Why did you fight him again!?” Katya shouted from the corner of the ring, catching the attention of the Moblings gathered around.
“You think this was my idea when I got up!? I’m practically a hostage here!” Nova retorted angrily from the ground.
“Uk kuk uku,” the Alpha said, seemingly waiting for Nova to get back on his feet.
“The Alpha said, ‘If you have the strength to talk to your friend, you have the strength to keep training...’” explained the older Mobling standing near Katya.
Katya's interest was piqued, and she eagerly approached the older Mobling, glad to find someone who spoke her language. Meanwhile, Nova was forced to rise by the Alpha to continue his training.
“Is this a training session?” she asked the older Mobling before turning her attention to Nova and cheering him on.
“You can do it, Nova!” she encouraged, though it was clear from her observations that she didn’t believe he could defeat the Alpha.
Nova looked like a child in his first karate class, being corrected in a way that schools had long abandoned due to concerns about violence.
Disheartened, Katya turned her attention away from the training and crouched to the old Mobling’s level to pull out her notebook.
“Mr. Mobling, I’m very interested in conducting updated research on the Moblings while we’re here. Could you spare a moment to answer a few questions?” Katya asked as politely and friendly as possible.
However, the old Mobling gave her complete indifference, barely glancing her way.
“No,” he replied disinterestedly, turning his gaze back to Nova’s punishment.
“Oh, come on. Your cooperation could benefit the village. Until now, Moblings were thought to be a closed and violent community, but clearly, they are much more complex. Don’t you think a proper investigation could help Moblings and humans understand each other better?” Before Katya could finish, the old Mobling cut her off with a look of contempt.
“Better? Do you mean we could get along with beings who only bring destruction and be relieved to gain their understanding or acceptance? Do you think we couldn’t live without that?” he said rudely, pointing his staff at her.
“All we want is for you and your friend to leave and take the chaos elsewhere. Stay away from me and don’t use me as an experiment!” the old Mobling shouted before turning his back on a stunned Katya and walking away.
Some of the Moblings watching the scene remained silent, including the Alpha, who would have put Nova knocked down again but looked in their direction instead.
“Uk kuk!” the six-foot giant exclaimed, gesturing with his one functional arm for the others to disperse. Even he seemed to abandon the training session.
“What’s his problem? I only wanted to help them stop being viewed as animals, you old fool...” Katya muttered in frustration, feeling affronted by the old Mobling’s words. She was also aware that saying such things in front of other Moblings or the Alpha could have put her in a difficult position.
“Anyway, are you alright, Nova?” she asked, turning to her companion, who looked as if his spirit was on the brink of departing for the afterlife.
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In the afternoon, the Moblings gathered around a large campfire in the center of the village for lunch.
The Alpha, who seemed to be leading the hunt, presented his people with an enormous boar, measuring about 13 feet from snout to tail. The beast's thick, bristly fur was a dark, mottled brown, and its sharp tusks gleamed ominously. Several Moblings swiftly began their tasks, expertly skinning and butchering the massive animal to prepare it for the feast.
Each Mobling had a crucial role in the village: gathering herbs, cooking, hunting, being a lookout, tanning leather, caring for animals, and collecting fruits or plants outside the cave.
Everyone seemed to have an important role, including the oldest Mobling, who spoke the human language and served as a key advisor and second leader.
After Nova woke up, he and Katya were invited by the Alpha to join the Moblings around the campfire, where they shared the boar.
Katya cast frequent glances at the older Mobling from a distance.
“Can you believe it? I was just trying to help them...” she grumbled, holding a piece of pork leg.
“Maybe they don’t need your help...” Nova, visibly tired and smeared with medicinal plant ointment, replied disinterestedly as he ate some meat.
“Hey, are you on their side?” Katya shot back, her eyes narrowing at Nova.
“What? No. I’m just saying... he doesn’t seem like a bad person. Maybe he has his reasons. Besides, I’m human, and I distrust humans too. Why shouldn’t he?” Nova continued eating, feeling the strength he had lost from the blows gradually returning.
For some reason, Nova felt that this food nourished him better than anything he had tasted since arriving in this world.
“And wasn’t it your grandfather who said you can’t understand the nature of something until you truly know it?” Nova smiled as he finished, looking at Katya, hoping she would understand.
“I don’t like you...” she replied, turning away with a smug expression, clearly ignoring Nova’s words.
Despite her frustration, Katya sensed that Nova was right. She resolved to uncover the root of the old Mobling’s hatred for humans, gain his empathy, and advance her research.
For now, they were obliged to stay in the village until the Alpha finished his training with Nova.
Fortunately, not everyone seemed to despise them. The little girl Nova had met earlier watched him curiously from a distance, and the Alpha, for reasons unknown, held Nova in high regard.
What surprises awaited them in the coming days?