October 04, 4021 07:03 [Sunken Forest]

Jin stretched out his arms, basking in the atmosphere of the Sunken Forest.

“Feeling good?” Grisha laughed.

“Like I’ve been reborn again,” he replied, an expression of pure contentment on his face.

Tengri directed the Scouting Unit to start uploading the documented flora and fauna data to the servers back in Aegypius Lab and ordered them to scan the area for any energy signatures. They did as they were told, procuring measurement devices from their waist belts and uncovering the sensors to properly analyze the environment. The moment the meters were switched on, they began to display erratic and unorthodox behavior, the dials on the equipment spinning uncontrollably.

“We’re close to the source. Start combing the area to see if anything matches the readings and monitor your radiation levels. If there's a tear in your suit get to decontamination right away,” Tengri stated.

The hours passed by and not a hide nor hair of the energy source had been located. The devices continued to move unpredictably, the analog sticks swinging wildly on the gauge. The meters were finally switched off when Tengri became fed up with the sound, ordering the Scouting Unit to put their devices away.

They set up camp near the cave exit. The engineers huddled together, brainstorming a way to transport the Crawlers deeper within the Sunken Forest.

“Well, if weight stabilization is already a feature, I could simply imbue the Crawlers with an attribute that would lessen the effects of gravity on them. That should allow for the transport of our supplies and the rest of our soldiers,” Prasanna proposed, joining in on the engineers’ conversation.

The theory seemed sound in principle. Upon testing it with one of the Crawlers, emptied of its content before the experiment began, the machine was able to balance on top of the forest’s canopy without issue. They tested the Crawler a few more times with increasing loads until they were satisfied with the results. Prasanna got to work imbuing the rest of their Crawlers with the same attributes, wiping the sweat from her brow once she finished.

Indra waited patiently, walking back to the campsite with her, happy to have concluded their first day in the forest without issue. The Hyenas sat together alongside their Sub-commanders, digging into their rations enthusiastically after a long day of travel and exploration.

“I tried to spread my roots, but the moment they entered the soil, flowers started to bud and bloom. I had to pull out of there quickly,” Emil explained when asked why he hadn’t used ‘Overgrowth’ to analyze the area.

Again with the flowers. Indra thought.

Idle conversations and playful banter faded out of Indra’s stream of consciousness as he noticed the outlier of the group, sitting separate from them. He tapped Prasanna on the shoulder to let her know he was going to leave for just a second, seating himself next to the Crow.

The Crow, hearing his footsteps just moments before, hastily scarfed down the last of his dinner, quickly lowering his mask and setting his tray aside before Indra could get a word in.

“I’m sorry, was I interrupting?” Indra apologized.

The Crow shook his head. “I was just finishing up. What did you want to talk to me about?”

“It’s just…What do you make of all of this?”

The Crow contemplated the question for a moment before answering. “I’ll admit, it’s different than what I expected. Still, don’t get complacent just yet. The Sunken Forest is bound to hold many secrets. We’ve only begun to scratch the surface of the mysteries that lie within,” he warned.

Indra nodded, pursing his lips. He eyed the soldiers in white, clustered off to the side. They weren’t eating anything, standing motionless like before. “What are those?”

“Eidolons, courtesy of the R&D department at Aegypius Lab. They’re warriors imbued with holy energy.”

“Where did they get holy—” Indra paused, looking back at the rest of the Hyenas. He already knew the answer. “These warriors…are they alive?”

“They were once,” the Crow replied.

Indra frowned. “You mean—”

“Homunculi live short lives. There’s an incentive to produce more as the old ones deteriorate. An abundance of anything can create a surplus of waste. The Vultures’ philosophy on the matter is that they’re recycling the product,” the Crow explained, gripping the log he sat on so tightly that it shattered.

He stood up, brushing the splinters from his armor.

“There will come a day when all of us will pay for our sins. And when that day arrives, I’ll happily walk into Hell with the knowledge that they’ll soon follow after me.”

The Crow’s hand shook, gold sparks flickering across his fingertips.

That light—

Indra blinked and the sparks were gone. The Crow left in a hurry, directing the Eidolons to secure the perimeter and stand watch as the rest of the camp went to sleep. Their movements sent shivers down Indra’s spine, causing the hairs on his arms to stand on end; they were mindless, without soul or conscience.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Warriors imbued with light—what a joke. The very concept was hypocrisy incarnate; reanimating corpses with the purity of Amrita. Indra shook his head, rejoining the other Hyenas. He avoided Jin’s gaze, unsure as to whom to direct his anger towards.

***

As the days progressed, the expedition party ventured deeper into the forest. The Crawlers shuffled along the treetops thanks to Prasanna’s weight negation and the stabilization features Stanley had implemented prior.

Strange creatures started to make an appearance as they crossed into uncharted territory; new types of birds, leopards, crocodiles, and the like were sighted. Striking distinctions in the patterns of their fur, feather, scales, the shapes of their skeletal structure, and their behaviors separated them from their counterparts around the world. The one constant that permeated throughout their encounters, however, was the presence of the hibiscus flower. The flowers grew in odd areas on the animals, though they didn’t seem to harm them in any way, shape, or form.

The animals didn’t seem to be affected by the flowers; most likely, their relationship was a form of commensalism, with the flowers deriving protection or nutrients from their hosts while serving no benefit nor causing harm to them.

Peculiarly, despite all the wild and new creatures that had been spotted, they had yet to see a single primate. Indra wondered why that was.

***

One week into their expedition, their search continued to yield no results. The whereabouts of the energy source were still unknown.

Indra lay beside Prasanna as they prepared to sleep. The night was calm and the sky was dotted with millions of stars, a mosaic of brilliant light.

“After this, what’s the plan?” she asked, rolling over on her side to face him.

Indra hadn’t thought that far ahead, taking a moment to piece together an appropriate response. “Well, I’ve been cleared of suspicion and we both have our citizenships now, so we could petition for an honorable discharge. If we pool our savings together we could look into purchasing property as well.”

Prasanna caressed Indra’s face with a hand. She traced her thumb along his cheek, smiling. “That sounds nice. Where do you want to go? I was thinking of someplace quiet as opposed to the city. Maybe the countryside or a secluded part of the coast?”

“Both sound good to me,” he replied, envisioning the future.

A rustling in the bushes suddenly caught Indra’s attention; his ears pricked up. He sat up, attempting to identify the source of the sound, witnessing a flash of green disappear into the trees. Emil?

“Indra what—”

Indra bolted after the mysterious green entity. He called after it, though it did not respond, weaving through the thickets. He followed in hot pursuit, keeping his focus trained on the figure. Rushing through the forest, he picked up on sounds of protest as Prasanna roused the rest of the camp. The soldiers mobilized after him, aiming to provide support.

“Indra, where are you going?!” Prasanna exclaimed over communications.

“You better have a good explanation for venturing off on your own, Krodha,” Tengri added.

“I saw someone run this way!” he explained. “At first I thought it was Emil—”

“Negative, Indra. Emil's here with us,” Prasanna stated.

“That’s what I figured. It’s something else! I think there’s another person here with us! They’ve been watching us the entire time!” he panted, racing after the stalker.

The pursuit came to a screeching halt as his target stopped in the middle of a valley. The figure turned around and Indra realized he hadn't followed a person at all.

He stood face to face with a humanoid creature covered in patches of dark green fur. Its face looked human, however, its deep piercing eyes unsettled Indra. It tilted its head appraising him inquisitively. Ever since they had stepped foot in the Sunken Forest, he had experienced a nagging feeling that something or someone was watching them from afar. Now, he had proof.

Indra reported his findings, describing the creature in great detail. There was a pause before Tengri replied.

“Sit tight, and keep an eye on it.”

***

When the rest arrived, they were at a loss for what to make of the situation. Grisha gasped upon seeing the creature. Tengri stood dumbfounded, crossing his arms. He did not look pleased.

“Send this data to the lab,” he sighed.

The Crow gripped the handle of his Subjugator tightly, clearly on edge. Indra looked to his fellow juniors for an explanation, only met with shaking heads and shrugs. It seemed only the senior members knew what the creature was. It inspected them curiously, though it kept its distance.

“It’s a Yaksha,” Jin whispered, his fingers trembling as he extended a hand to the creature.

Yaksha! Vivian had made mention of them in her lectures a few times. They were forest nymphs that could shape-shift and liked to play tricks on unsuspecting people. Though seen as mischievous and harmless in most cases, the Yaksha had served under the Devas as warriors, fighting alongside them. They vanished towards the end of the last Holy War when the Devas had supposedly vanquished the Sirens.

“That phrase again—‘Holy War’. Were you never informed of its name?” Usha growled.

That’s what we’ve called it for centuries. Indra informed him.

“Ridiculous. Even now they attempt to conceal the truth. That war, many called the War of Eternal Night. We knew it by another name, for its true purpose was to eradicate us from existence.”

What name did you know it by?

“We knew it as the Great Decimation.”

The name painted a grim picture, though the question still remained: why would the Sirens attack Uturia knowing the Devas and Dvaita would retaliate? It made no sense. Usha spoke no lies, but he had not revealed the entire truth either.

It seems that the more I learn about the past the more the details get muddled. Everyone keeps contradicting themselves. Indra frowned. The creature standing before them looked nothing like the sketches recovered from ancient Uturian and Dvaitan scriptures and tablets. The drawings had been more animalistic, though the regal way the Yaksha held itself perfectly resembled its depiction on paper.

The Yaksha in the drawings had also donned armor wrought from the strongest metals on the known Earth, but it seemed like this creature was simply a remnant of a golden era long-forgotten; it was as stark as the day it was born.

Jin approached the creature slowly, keeping his hands visible to show it that he meant no harm. The Yaksha tilted its head again, bolting skittishly as he edged closer.

“Damn!” Jin cursed, clutching his head. “That might have been the first Yaksha sighting in almost seven thousand years!” he exclaimed.

There was a slight rustling in the bushes along the ridge of the valley. At first, it seemed like it was only the Yaksha scampering away. However, the rustling continued along the length of the valley’s ridges, turning to rumbling as the ground trembled. The march of footsteps caused the earth to shake as hundreds, if not thousands of Yaksha, suited in golden armor, emerged from the foliage above, aiming their bows at the expedition party.

Indra’s eyes widened, his instincts kicking in as the Commanders flew into action, directing their troops to fall into emergency defensive maneuvers.

It was an ambush.