Gurk walked away from the tree and pressed the duckling's head against his chest. His eyes scanned the trees, looking for any inconsistent movement among the leaves. The duckling continued her sobbing, but it was softer and slower. He continued to trek forward, the sound of the wind and rustling leaves becoming more prevalent the further he moved into the Fallen Canopy.

"Looks like your friend is moving in a crooked manner," Evelyn said. She had a radar-like projection floating of her. Two red dots were clustered together that moved win synchronization with Gurk's footsteps. The movement of the blips was erratic, moving in a jagged circle. "He's going to be looping around nonstop at this rate."

"Forgive Gurk for not being familiar with jungles," Itzel said. "He's used to living in Labrisson where we can count the number of trees in the city with the fingers on our hands!"

"It's going to make him an easy target. I'm sure Lars is lurking around in there somewhere. And now that he's carrying around that other Neo-Sapia, he's just asking to get killed."

"He's not asking for it! He's doing what's right!"

"I suppose that's one way to look at," Evelyn giggled. "But whatever guarantees one's survival is actually what's right. Instead of just letting the duckling die, he's putting himself at a greater risk as well. I assume he's fine with sacrificing himself for the safety of the child as well. Not the brightest move in my opinion. But I'm no hunter, so what do I know?" The woman smiled as she returned her attention to the main screen.

"Yeah, maybe it's best if you keep your opinions to yourself," Itzel replied.

"Fine." Evelyn pouted. "I won't answer any more of your questions then. How does that sound? Let's see how you're able to follow what's going on without my knowledge."

"I'm sure I'll live."

"Doubt your friend and his newfound buddy will," Evelyn turned her hand behind her, giving an angered Itzel a coy wink.

Itzel remained silent, instead shifting her attention back to the main projector. Gurk faced them, giving the audience a full view of the leaves behind him. A small shadow darted behind the crocodile, making the leaves rustle.

"Behind you Gurk!" Janus said. The crocodile remained vigilant, continuing to walk forward as the duckling’s sobbing became louder again. He stopped his movement, trying to comfort the child by hugging her.

"Quiet," he whispered. As he spoke, the leaves behind him moved again for the viewers to see.

"That must be Lars!" Janus said with a twinge of fear. "He's going to get a surprise attack on Gurk!"

"Oh, I doubt that. Lars is an expert on stealth. Even we wouldn't be able to see him. That must be one of the Essencima that roam around here. Either way, I'm sure we'll find out in a few moments."

Among the darkness, a golden projectile cut through the air, hitting Gurk in the back. He let out a groan as he released one hand that held onto the duckling to reach where the attack had hit him. With his fingers he pulled out a golden feather that stuck into the back of his jacket. He eyed it, looking at it glisten and sparkle before dropping it to the ground.

More feathers cut through the trees. Still holding onto the duckling, the crocodile jumped on his side while angling his body to make sure the girl was holding wouldn't get crushed underneath his weight. The projectiles flew in a beam-like line, pinning themselves into the tree just above Gurk.

From the darkness, the attacker emerged. The mother duck stood tall; her arms spread out with her razor-sharp feathers sparkling. She let out a low and fierce squawk as she looked at Gurk with fury in her eyes. Gurk looked down at the duckling in her arms. She let out a series of relieved chirps as her eyes met those of her mother.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

The adult duck raised one across the front of her body, showing off the series of blade-like feathers. Gurk let go of the duckling and watched as she wobbled to her mother. She stood behind the legs of the adult, staring at Gurk who remained on his side.

"No... fighting..." Gurk mumbled as he slowly got up. He put his hands up with open palms, showing that he wasn't going to attack. Despite his intentions, the mother maintained her arm in the same position, ready to strike at any moment. Gurk managed to get to his feet without any confrontation, but the tension was still high as the adult duck refused to let down her attacking pose.

"Other enemies," Gurk said. "Essencima... everywhere!"

The duck's face went from anger to concern. As maintained her attacking stance, the duckling tugged on the bottom of the dress. She turned her head down to look at the child who was pointing at Gurk while making soft chirping sounds.

"I helped!" Gurk said.

The duckling nodded.

"Work together?" Gurk asked, slowly stepping forward. He extended one handed, requesting a handshake. The mother slowly lowered her arm and extended her feathered arm. The two hands met, the adult shivering as she touched Gurk's chilly palm.

"Good." Gurk ended the handshake and took a step back. He looked around the area and scratched the back of his neck. "You lost?" he asked.

The adult let out a quick and quiet quack accompanied with a single nod of her head.

"Darn." He turned around and pointed in the direction that he was going prior to being attacked. "Follow me?"

The adult duck replied in the same manner as before. She placed her hand on the back of the duckling's head, making her walk forward. She then lifted her into her arms and cradled her against her chest as the child rested her head on the mother’s shoulders. All three ventured forward, pushing past a dense set of branches and disappeared from view.

"Interesting. I don't recall something like this ever happening," Evelyn said with intrigue.

"Seen what happen? Someone show compassion?" Itzel snapped.

"My oh my. For some reason I had a feeling you'd say something along those lines. You are truly becoming predictable, darling. But no. As evident by the meals I offered you, I have seen as well as shared more than my fair share of compassion. I was talking about multiple targets teaming up."

"Why wouldn't they band together to go up against a common threat?" Janus asked.

"For one, the Eco-Dome is too large for multiple to find each other on a regular basis. They're placed in random parts of the structure, so the two coming across one another is already unlikely if they aren't killed beforehand. Secondly, Neo-Sapia usually aren't the kinds of creatures that can hold coherent conversations. Of course, there are exceptions like your friend, but more often than not they're only a few steps higher in intelligence than the animal breeds that they're derived from. On the rare chance two do meet, they're more likely to start fighting than try to come up with a plan to work together."

"I'd say being forced to fight for your life in a dangerous environment you've never been in might contribute to the hostility," Janus said in a condescending manner. "It's not like the other big, bulky organisms in this place seem too keen on conversation."

"True. Regardless, this is still quite a rare occurrence. I'm sure Mag would be excited to find out that he's going up against a pair of marginally more intelligent targets this time! It should make up for Suze's lack of offensive capabilities."

"Suze? I assume that's the name of the duck," Janus said.

"Of course."

"Those feathers look deadly though!" Itzel added.

"True. But unfortunately, that's the only offensive ability she possesses. And her defensive capabilities are quite pathetic if we're being honest. A single bullet would most likely be enough to permanently disable her."

"You're calling a mother taking her child through Essencima-infested territory and bloodthirsty hunters pathetic?" Itzel said with disgust. "And what does that make you, huh?"

"I'm not the one in the Eco-Dome defending myself, now am I sweetheart?" Evelyn giggled. "Hollow bones and a single Special Technique won't do you much good!"

Itzel clutched onto the arm of her chair, holding back from saying something else. There were only the ambient sounds of nature coming from the main projection. After a long and drawn-out moment of jungle sounds, Evelyn flipped through more of the available channels. A multitude of different angles flashed across the projection, showing more vacant sections of the Fallen Canopy.

"Wait! I think I saw something!" Janus said. Evelyn stopped going through the cameras and switched back a few channels. "There! Look over there, towards the corner."

"Oh, I think that must be Lars!" Evelyn replied. She pointed at a small silhouette that crawled against the ground. "He likes to keep low. Must have picked up a scent that either Gurk or the one of the ducks left behind. That means he'll catch up to them in no time at all!"