“Oh Nyn! Zhal you looked you would faint by a breeze, not a fighter it seems” Tolle says with a hint of superiority
Zhal a bit annoyed says “I'm not someone who likes aggressiveness at all and avoids it like there are spirits”
Olle, a bit surprised asks “then how did you kill a catcher, doesn't every Griffin need to kill on their own to gain the privileges of a proper adult?”
“I did it alone after 7 near deadly failures over the span of 20 years, would have been killed if not for my elders watching over” Zhal says with no emotional change, both the brothers look like they are seeing a forsaken.
“Isn't that like a record? Even the worst Griffins I have talked to was able to do it after their 3rd or 4rth try” says Olle
“I don't know why my elders dident let me become the Catcher offsprings after the 6th try, guess they just love me that much” She says sipping some water that she got
“Maybe Nyn sees interest in you?” Tolle says in a joking manner
“Ah yes the same god that create the forsaken instead of helping us with its power over our universe” She says irritated at the mention, “well I am gonna order some food for later and do my verbal payment” Zhal moves from the table and shair to the counter “Thanks for the chat, hope I meet you both here or somewhere else”
Both of the brothers say goodbye and goodluck, Zhal goes past the huge Rhinecere whose name she overheard as Ostrella, once she gets to the counter she starts to talk to the cashier that she finally can pay proper attention to.
The cashier was a Kisk like Elina, she had hair and ploom on her head and sides that are rainbow colors, her face however is shades of black, gray and blue. Zhal notices many scars and some are even recent it seems, her eyes are deep blue, the rest of her body are dark red, she also sees two extra mechanical arms.
Her uniform is the classic restaurant deep red and blue, but it leaves many areas, for, well, stuff.
“hello I am Zhal and I would like to do my verbal pay please”
The Kisk blinks twice “Name is Kaka, yes, you can tell the story via the chatroom that shown here” Showing the code to the chatroom.
Zhal goes out of the way and tells a story of back home.
Decades ago she was exploring an island until she noticed it was moving a bit strange and then bam, giant rocks and debri flying and crashing the area she is in, she yeets away with total fear and shock and once she is a bit far looks back and sees the sland she was on was fighting another island that attacked back, using roots and tendrils on their bodies to throw in a sense body parts of and on themselves to the other, she sees other creatures flee, as booms, crashes and screeches are heard as two country sized beings clash for one reason or another.
But that as much as she cares to look as she flies away no matter how low of a chance she gets hit with a stray material with weight behind it of orders of magnitude her ability.
“And that's a story of mine, is that enough?” She text.
The owner of the chatroom text yes and wish she come back soon.
Zhal hovers to the exit, and outside, but then starts to walk again. She feels a bit tired and decides to head home to sleep, knowing it's gonna take some time to actually sleep.
While going, she is still amazed just seeing the density of activity to the point that even with her clear mind, it's like looking at a swarm of colors and shapes.
Once she gets home she text Elina her days eating, she then puts the food in the storage unit, takes a nice bath, she knows there are automatic baths but she likes to clean herself without a helper.
She jumps to the ceiling bed, hangs upside down and tries to sleep, its gonna take a bit.
Zhal is home talking to friends and family and how she is excited to go outside, she starts to fly a bit, looking at the continental size clouds of whatever it is, dwarfing the far away islands, the sky going down until light cant reach it no more, a place she always fear to fall into.
looking back the island is gone, she is not confused however and instead just flies happily.
She suddenly feels something pull, she, she cant move her limbs, she sees weird strings come towards her, fear and doom comes as the realization hits her “no NO NONO NONONO, HOW DID I GET CAUGHT, I!” She tries to move her flexible neck so her beak, her claws so she can cut the fleshy strings and yet she in a awkward position with a risk of her beak cutting her limbs-“I CAN'T WORRY ABOUT MY LIMBS, I NEED TO CUT! She does, and yet more come, one ensnares her beak, even when her snout tries to cut them off, its hurts, she is completely in histerical mode.
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“I DON'T WANT TO DIE, I DONTMSWATTODIE WJIANNTSJKDIESNWSAWANTODIE” Over and Over and then, “WHY CAN'T I SEE BEHIND ME” she feels the flesh envelop her, and the beautiful clouds and dark endless ‘ground’ gets covered with slimy flesh, sudden clarity hits her, as her mind force her to accept her demise, the world slows.
“Im sorry, dad, mom, I tried, I hope I-” Zhal wakes up, she releases her grip and lands on the floor, completely slimy and erratic, “Fucking god, that the worst one yet, I-” She gets intereppted by a ring that she finally notices, “oh wonder who that is”.
Zhal does a quick clean of herself and goes to the door and checks, ‘Looks like it's one of my kind’ she asks who it is on the other side of the door,“Who is this?”
The Griffin says in a happy tone “Hi I am next door neighbor Gengehsa,azaranie,kculvevart or Aza, Oxygen Elemental, Elina can confirm this is who I am”
Zhal asks Elina through the chatroom and she confirms it who she claims to be and that she is harmless
Zhal opens the door and welcomes Aza to her home.
Aza's appearance makes her look anything like her species, except for the general body.
Instead of a beak, she has a jaws with masses of teeth and lips, her eyes are in the skulls and positioned opposite of each other (front and back), she has six limbs and two beautiful wings, she has a long flexible tail, she wears the simplest of clothing that could be easily torn, underneath is beautiful earth black skin that shines, her chest with a beautiful colorful patterns of Pink, Blue, Red and Purples, that goes to her redhead with yellow on the lips.
Aza is a testament to the ability to completely change your body in this Melting Pot, Zhal parents would have fallen off the Island if they saw Aza, but Zhal generally didn't care, as long as it didn't affect her, which it didn't.
Aza speaks up “what? shocked by my beautiful colors and shapes? I get the look alot from others, I suggest you also try, it's really fun”
Zhal goes from her shocked stupor and responds “Name is Zhal dirt Elemental, I might try later, but not right now, sorry for my stare it just, well, so different and yet its amazing” Aza stands more confident as Zhal speaks
“Yeah, the doctors and physicians are amazing, they are not that hard to convince if the payment is for their liking” She says and goes to the chair to sit. “I didn't come to brag, well sort of, I mainly wanted to see the new neighbor and your look makes me nostalgic for my old self, but I don't regret what I have done”. Zhal walks and sits next to her. “Sorry that it took a bit to respond, I had a nightmare”
Aza looks “Catcher?” “Catcher” Zhal says in a bit of shame this time.
“How many attempts?” Aza says looking “8th attempts”
“One” She says, in a sorrowful tone, “but even after killing it first time, I was no more confident, and I hated myself, for the fact that we look what we do to kill something that should have been extinct by then”, Aza moves from the chair and stands up “That our world is so desperate to get us to kill them, to force their people to kill with the risk of death and trauma so we can get the right everyone else has from birth” Zhal is surprised by the amount of sympathy and care, especially from someone that killed theirs in their first try.
“You are a testament to why the system is shit, we have the tech, the manpower and ability to make a force so we and our descendants don't have to”, Zhal continues to listen.
“like we live in 96 million years EOP (Era Of Peace)” Zhal have had thoughts of why she and the others needed to kill Catchers, but she assumed it was due to a number of reasons that made a bit of sense, but Aza has poket a big hole in those explanations, 8th attempts, deadly and traumatizing attempts to kill something using her body, and that same thing could have been easily killed with the guns she has seen in videos in a distance.
Why has no one brought masses of weaponry from Ket to her homeworld, why haven't the governments gotten guns, bioweapons, or non-sentient controlled beings, why us?.
Zhal speaks “I have never thought deep into it, dont know why, but I agree wholeheartedly with you and if your gonna ask me to join a group, sorry, don't think I will, not someone that like that, but I support your cause”
Aza is happy with Zhal response “I just wanted to vent, some don't agree with the sentiment and no I am not apart of a group, don't want to be dragged into that kind of stuff, to messy”
Zhal asks something that she rarely does, “how old are you? if you don't want to answer that fine”
Aza expression does not sour “13093 earth years, have been staying for most of my life, it just so nice and cheap” Zhal quite shocked, not her age, but the fact that she also has stayed so long
“Are you gonna go anytime soon?” Zhal asks
Aza moves her neck in a no “No, are you?”
“No, I am someone who likes unique beings and their culture, this is the perfect place, and as you said, cheap”
Aza reflectively clicks but instead a chomp is heard, “interesting, no wonder your look wasn't in that way, wanna be friends?”
Zhal says “Well we basically are, but yes, glad to have you a as a neighbor” Zhal reaches with her hand and Aza grabs it “How is the neighborhood, Elina didn't mention”
Aza “well everyone does their own thing, we have Rhino Dragons, Slobber- oh I mean Sloberitin, Spyderling and a Angel”
Zhal is filled with happiness hearing this “Oh I would love to have a conversation with all of them”
“Wanna go and shop, since you recently came here, even if you're not a combatant, it good to have one gun and some protection with you, I can show you” Aza looks at Zhal in anticipation
“You are a few lines away from becoming my best friend” Zhal goes closer to Aza
Aza confident front has some cracks “well, it's a bit to fast for me”
Zhal “sorry, just, we only known for what 5 min and you are already this kind”
Aza “I sympathize with you and it's just nice speaking to my own kind that will stay in this wonderful place”
Zhal follows Aza to their shopping adventure.