“Here, Lumpy, have another one!” Eric said as he threw another fish at the reptile.
Munch!
“Thank you for staying close to me all the time. Or is it that you just love fish way too much?”
Munch! Much!
“Yeah, I know it’s not fair to be cock-teasing you like this, but I need you to stick around. You won’t follow me if I give you all the fish right away, you’d just get stuffed and fall asleep. Then I’d have to go all alone and would end up as someone’s dinner sooner or later. You certainly don’t want that to happen, do you?”
“Wro!”
“Of course you don’t! Why else would you follow me around and be so patient about it? Honestly, I was worried you’d try biting into me, trying to get all those tasty fishes strapped to my chest, but I’m glad to see you’re far more patient than I thought.”
“Wro!”
“And I’m glad to see the other dinos are too afraid to mess with you. You’ve already saved my life twice. You’re a real badass, you know.”
“Wro!”
“Yes, you are! Yes, you are! You’re like a dog, man! I swear, sometimes I get the impression that you understand my every word.”
“Wro!”
“Yeah, that’s what I’m talking about! You always respond at just the right time. As if we really are having a conversation.”
“Wro!”
“So, I’ve begun to wonder … considering this world has magic and all … and for all I know, you may be some kind of a magical creature, like Liri back home. So, I’ve been wondering, is it possible that you actually understand every word I say thanks to some magical mumbo-jumbo I know nothing about?”
“Wro!”
“Yeah, I know, that would be way too convenient. Then again, everything is super convenient in this place, so I was hoping … but I guess that would be really pushing it way too far.”
“Wro!”
“I bet it’s like with the other animals. You don’t understand the words I’m saying but are interpreting the tone of my voice. Just how I’m starting to differentiate between those barks of yours. They all sound the same but don’t have the same meaning.”
“Wro!”
“Anyway, you’re a real help. A real lifesaver, that is. I got enough moss, and I even managed to get enough timber to make a makeshift frame for the bed. Too bad I don’t have any nails to fix it properly. I tried with some sharp branches, but it just doesn’t work. But still, it’s way better than sleeping on the floor. The last thing I need here is to catch a cold. Although, the temperature here is just right. We’re deep underground, yet it’s perfect room temperature. I just hope we aren’t close to some active volcano.”
“Wro!”
“And it’s not just the lava worrying me. I’ve been playing Morrowind when I was younger, when I had much more free time. Those were the days. If I’ve learned anything from that game, it’s that a volcano is a perfect hiding place for a villain. And I just don’t feel like a hero.”
“Wro!”
“Speaking of which … nah! You’re not similar at all. I was thinking how you may be similar to those things acting as horses in Morrowind, those big reptiles pulling carriages. But you’re smaller and not so fat.”
“Wro!”
“And you don’t have chameleon eyes.”
“Wro!”
“But anyway, I got myself a bed, so that’s one problem solved. I’ve been thinking of making a bow and arrows next. I’m not an expert, but it looks like those vines can make some good bowstrings. I did a few tests, and those do have some elasticity. It doesn’t hurt to try. But I just can’t find a proper piece of wood. I need a curved piece of fine wood, and I couldn’t find anything like that in our forest. So we need to do some exploring. Hopefully, there are other forested areas with different types of trees.”
“Wro!”
“Ah, another clearing. But … what is this?” Eric squinted his eyes as he started studying the new clearing before them.
“Wro!”
“Is this … fog?”
“Wro!”
“What the fuck is fog doing in a cave?”
“Wro!”
“Hey, Lumpy, have you been here before?”
“Wro!”
“Nod your head up and down if you were.”
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“Wro!”
“I’ll take that as yes. So … I’m kinda scared right now, not gonna lie. But it should be safe if you’ve been here, right?”
“Wro!”
“I’m worried if it’s some kind of foggy monster lurking around there.”
“Wro!”
“Hey, don’t judge me! I know next to nothing about this world of yours! Seeing thick fog in a clearing like this screams supernatural to me. There shouldn’t be any fog in the caves … as far as I know. But … hmm … what are clouds if not … steam? Clouds are essentially water rising into the air … due to heat … does that mean there’s some hot water nearby?”
“Wro!”
“Don’t tell me there’s some natural hot tub waiting for me there! I know this place is super convenient for a cave, but that would be absolutely ridiculous!”
“Wro!”
“Ok Lumpy, let’s go! If you aren’t scared, then it means everything is all right.”
“Wro!”
“Damn, this fog just keeps getting thicker and thicker. How big is this clearing? And it’s getting hotter too, so it has to be real steam. I just hope it’s not too hot at the source. It would be such a shame to get my hopes up only to realize the water is literally boiling.”
“Wro!”
“But, then again, that would be the ideal place to make a boiling pot! If I could work the wood right. Or … hmm … I could make a boiling pot out of some big stone. It would take weeks, if not months, but I can work on carving it up in my spare time. That’s the one thing I got plenty of.”
“Wro! Wro!”
“I bet you’d like it too. It’s much tastier than the raw meat. Speaking of which … I never bothered cooking meat for you before. Sorry about that.”
“Wro! Wro! Wro!”
“I’ll make sure to cook some for you next time. Who knows, maybe you’ll like it.”
“Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro!”
“You’re quite talkative all of a sudden. You like the idea that much, huh?”
“Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro!”
Eric noticed that the reptile was lagging behind him.
“Hey, hey, hey! Don’t stop now! Let’s not get separated in this fog. It’s easy to lose one another.”
The reptile stopped dead in its tracks.
“Come on, let’s go!”
It stared Eric in the eye, refusing to take a single step forward.
“What’s wrong?”
“… Wro!”
“Yeah, wro to you too. The hot tub awaits.”
“Wro!”
“Wro! Wro! Wro!”
“Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro!”
“What’s wrong with you?”
“Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro!”
“Hey, hey, calm down.”
“Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro!”
“Wait …”
“Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro!”
“Are you telling me …”
“Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro!”
“Is this place not so safe after all?”
“Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro!” The reptile turned around and started running.
“Hey, come back!”
“Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro!”
“Slow down, you fucker!”
“Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro! Wro!”
“Wait, you idiot! We’ll get separated!”
“WROOO!!! WROOO!!! WROOO!!!”
“You mother … huhh … damn it!” Eric cursed as his reptile friend disappeared from his sight, “Ok, it can’t be that hard to find a way out of here. Just go straight and stick to the walls.”
“And stop talking out loud, for fuck’s sake.”
Eric got his spear at the ready and started advancing slowly. He tried to match his speed with the visibility so he’d have enough time to react if he noticed something in front of him instead of ramming straight into it. He did his best to move as silently as possible, but the primal urge to look around the shoulder made that impossible.
After some time, he finally saw something on the ground before him.
“Is that … yes, that’s water,” he thought, “And it looks hot. So I was right, after all. There is a natural hot tub in this clearing.”
“But I was too dumb to realize I’m not the only one who’d enjoy a warm bath. Every other beast probably likes it, too.”
The water splashed suddenly to his right, startling him and making him gasp. He pointed his spear in that direction, anticipating an attack.
But it didn’t come. Instead, after squinting his eyes, he noticed a figure as tall as him standing in the fog.
He started walking backward slowly but stopped after a single step as he realized something.
As he focused his gaze on it even further, he realized that standing before him was a figure of a person.
That made him wonder all sorts of things:
“Is that really a person? I mean, it could be some humanoid monster, but it could also be a real person. I don’t see why I’d be the only person stuck in this cave. Yes, that has to be it! Some other guys from the embassy must be here, too! Why would I be the only one to end up here? I’m nobody special, so why would I end up all alone here? I’m not the only high-ranking diplomat in the embassy! Yeah, that has to be it!”
He stepped forward without thinking things through. His heart took control over his mostly rational mind, urging it to seek allies. The promise of a human ally and actual companionship was far too sweet just to ignore and walk away.
“And even if this person isn’t a human, at least they can be reasoned with. I’ve already learned how to deal with timkiks, so I’m sure we can get along. I’m sure they also want to get the fuck out of here. Only a madman would want to stay in this prison.”
Still, he pointed his spear in front of him, just in case.
The figure didn’t stand still, though. It crouched for a few moments before standing back up to face Eric’s direction.
He immediately understood it had noticed him and was waiting for him to approach.”
“Hello?” He said, careful not to be too loud, “Hello? Can you hear me?”
The figure just stood there.
He paused for a moment before continuing: “Can you understand me? Do you speak English?”
Still nothing.
“I mean you no harm. And now I know that you mean no harm to me. You’d already attack me otherwise. I’ll come closer now. Is that ok?”
He got no response at all.
“Ok, here I come. Don’t get startled.”
He put his spear aside and took one step, which wasn’t enough. After taking another step, he finally saw who was standing before him.
It was a young woman with pale, white skin. Very pretty, probably the prettiest woman he saw in person. The kind of face that, back in his world, is reserved for the magazines only. He couldn’t help but stare as his hands lowered the spear unconsciously, and she stared back at him in turn with her big, green eyes.
“You … can you understand me?” He asked.
Again, he got no response. She just looked disinterestedly at him.
“You look human, all right. But I don’t remember seeing you in the base. Where do you come from?”
“…”
“Are you traumatized from this experience? Yeah, I’m also traumatized. I never thought that I’d have to …”
His mind stopped working as soon as he looked below her face. He was so relieved to see a human face that he didn’t bother checking anything else.
But now he finally noticed that she was completely naked.
“Sorry, sorry! I didn’t mean to stare!” He said, hiding his eyes with his hand, “Don’t you have clothes? I can give you mine, here!”
The girl finally smiled at him, but he was too busy unbuttoning his shirt to notice.
“Here, take thi …” He noticed her smile as he extended his hand to give her his shirt. But it wasn’t a smile of joy or gratitude. It was more like …
… a predatory smile. The kind of twisted smile a bully has when tormenting his victim.
“Are you not worried about … wait … wait a minute …” Eric’s face got serious once the realization finally kicked in.
“Humans don’t have shiny, white hair …”
And when he looked up to examine her hair, he noticed something else.
“… and we certainly don’t have horns on top of our heads.”
Her horns distracted him long enough to miss the club heading straight for his forehead.