Clutching Flappy in her one hand. She picked up the packed cloth with the ``goody two shoes´´ loot, as the fat flappy boss lady had named it, with her other hand. And looked around for a that small branch, only seeing leaves on the ground. She squeezed slightly down on Flappy, to make sure he would understand.

‎ “Can you look for that small branch, which will fit well for this?”

“ … yes.”

“You okay Flappy?”

“I-I’m okay. Y-yeah … sorry.”

With a smile full of white teeth shining in the last dregs of daylight. Slightly off color towards orange-red, where some rays hit them directly. She just grinned at him, while he feebly squirmed in her hand.

“Good. We can be friends. But no more lying to Spiko. Spiko is a good girl, Flappy needs to be a good … bird too?”

Still unsure if her captive was truly male, so she just used the word that described him the best. He sounded like one and had the mannerism of a male, as far as she remembered. But he seemed to be way too much a push over, to be a male. Lifting him to her eyes and turning the still captive Flappy horizontal, she tried to check.

“W-WHAT! ARE YOU DOING!”

Duo the shift in attention, Flappy managed to escape her inspection in the end. Fear for his life, came second to the shame of being subjected to a body check. At least for that short moment, before realization hit. That he very well might get eaten now.

“I mean.”

Cough Ehhmmpf

“I will be back soon! With … yeah, with the best carrying pole material possible!”

Looking at Flappy flying away, but clearly looking for the needed material he had been quested upon. Spiko’s grin grew more softly, now really reaching her eyes with a glimmer of mirth.

I bet he forgot that he can fly away now.

It was something Spiko was quite proficient in. As she herself had been distracted a lot of times, by something seemingly more pressing. Resulting in forgetting something important. Like that there was a large body of water beneath her, when she really wanted to get that squirrel. Which had taunted her, by throwing nuts around.

I still can feel the soggy wetness … I hate squirrels.

How did she know the animals name? She had no idea. But when she thought about the image of that annoying little prey animal. Name, habitat, way of life and some curious facts flashed into her mind. As soon as she had started thinking of the incident. She hadn’t had that happen with Flappy. Tilting her head slightly to the left and her tail twitching. But just the very tip. She frowned.

I never knew that. Why do I know it now? Squirrels burry their prey? Why?

Shaking her head, as more info about squirrels came to her. She started rubbing at her temple.

Hurts head … no more bad thoughts.

She had that throbbing feeling in her temple, most of the time now. Just a lot weaker and never for long. But during the whole conversation with everyone, it had gotten worse.

Thinking too much hurts … I wish I had someone to do that for me. Did he always feel like that?

With determination in her step, she distanced herself from all the carnage still around here. Now mostly chipped and scratched up bones, with the rare scrap of clothing in between. The scene would have looked like a serial killers’ private playground, to anyone from earth. Which probably would make them piss themself and then run away screaming bloody murder. To Spiko on the other hand, it screamed of something else. Making her slowly walk in a downwind direction, which luckily was where she had planned to go anyways. As she could walk close by the dirt road now.

Hmm

Glancing up at the canopy of leaves. That rustled slightly in the wind, giving small breaks for the very last rays of sunlight. Dusk finally was settling down, into true night. And with the lack of any glowing rivers or flies. Her eyes began to adapt to the environment. As shapes became less clear and everything started gaining a shade of grey to black. Her mind wandered to the moon, she wished was visible to her.

He always liked to sit outside. Watch the moon.

As she walked around trees and hopped over roots in her way. Her eyes searched the canopy of leaves, time and time again. She could have gone and used the road, but it felt too vulnerable in the dark. Just having something to hide behind or climb up onto, made her feel more at ease.

It’s even darker than last night. Must be a night without any Moon in the dark sky.

Musing over things she previously had taken for granted. That slight twitch of her tail came back quite often during her silent walk. She wasn’t good at not thinking too much. At least now, that there was so much weird stuff to think about.

Flap

“Haa … haaaa …. there you are. Do you know HOW FAR I had to carry THIS!”

Glaring in the direction of Flappy. She could see him dropping a branch, the length of her arm. Just a few paces away from where she was walking.

“What am I to do with that exactly.”

As she couldn’t see him very clearly. The movements of his wings, wildly gesturing was all that came through to her.

“HAAA! Just put it where the cloth is bound together. Lay down your loot, I will show you. I’m too tired.”

Sayd and done. A few moments later, the length of wood had been fiddled trough the opening in the cloth. By more dexterous wings, then she had deemed them. Then with a probable victorious smile on his non-existent lips. Flappy looked appreciatingly at the well-crafted piece.

“There you go. A perfect Bindle. Now just put the stick part on your shoulder. So that the part with the cloth hangs behind you.”

“Like this?”

“Yes. And how does it feel?”

Shifting around a bit, then moving a few paces in a circle around Flappy.

“Hnn, it’s lighter? That’s weird, I carried this a bit. Now it’s way lighter than before.”

“That’s the power of knowledge. Be happy that you got help. This way your shoulder well … shoulders the heavier burden of the weight. And not your arm muscles.”

Expectantly Flappy looked at her. Nodding to him, she started walking again. Now with her mind lifted off the weight she was carrying.

Still a bit further, before I can climb a tree. Looking for a good branch to sleep on.

“Hey! How about a ``Thank you´´.”

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

Looking at him, who just plopped down on her other shoulder. She smiled with more teeth then necessary.

“Thank you Flappy.”

“Ah, do-don’t mind it. Haha.”

About 1km away from the spot that smelled of death. She started climbing up the next best tree. It only took a few minutes to reach a height, where the branches could hold her new weight.

This makes everything harder … I hope it's worth all the trouble. Hnn, good food. I want some tuna, oh or beef!

Wincing as that triggered new memories again. She cursed softly in her mind.

This really needs to stop. No more thinking. Just going to sleep now.

Ignoring Flappy that talked to her. She laid down on the rough bark of the branch. Its woody smell and so scratchable exterior, made her drift into sleep in bare moments. The forest around her came to life as the hours passed. Night sounds from prey and predators could be softly heard. But as everything was quite far away, it didn’t register in her unconscious mind as a danger to her. Only an unhappy Flappy was sitting close by. Thinking about his chances of escape, given the speed his captor could react at. Then shaking his head with sad looking eyes.

zzzzzz-zik-zik

Her ears flopped up, fully straightening and focusing on a loud sound. Cracking open one eye, by a bit. Spiko scanned the area where it had originated from. With only like 4 hours of sleep, her groggy mind slugged through the motions of her instincts.

zik-zik-zzzzzz- zik

A skittering motion on the dirt road was all she could see. Without any light from the moon and the canopy of leaves blocking most of the other light sources. Even her sensitive eyes could only see vague shapes.

Sniff

OH NO!

Her furry tail puffing up instantly after a deep intake of air through her nose. She knew, that was nothing she wanted to hunt or be hunted by. Her hearth speeding up. She fully woke up in mind, by just thinking about what that smell meant.

Calm down. It might not know I am here. Still, be still.

Looking at the skittering motion, with tension in her muscles. Barely keeping herself from running away. Fear dug itself out of the deepest recess of her mind. A fear of something that once had hurt her badly and which she took every possible precaution not to get close to again. The smell was unmistakable.

How big is that one … bigger than I am now?

Shivering and getting goosebumps all over her skin. She was even more alert now. It started passing below her. Cursing her choice to just use the closest tree to the now dreadful looking dirt road. She looked in horror at the skittering thing, as big as that nice tasting boar she had fought before. Or even bigger!

It’s leaving. Just stay quiet. What do they eat again? Plants? I do hope these eat plants too.

zik-zik-zzz

Ignoring all the information that pooped up on its, way smaller cousin of a devilish monstrous fiend. Even the now lessened stinging sensation in her mind was ignored. Her nope sense, that had mostly been inactive since she woke up covered in slime. Was screaming at her, hard.

“OH MY GOD!”

The skittering stopped. Spiko could sense her blood draining from her face, hands and feet. Paling instantly, as her body prepared itself for the worst. As Flappy had noticed the sound and woken up, he jumped directly into full on panic mode.

“THAT’S A NIGHT CRAWLING SHIELD BUG DEVIL!!!”

“S-sshhh!”

Hissing with a barely hearable sound at Flappy that seemed to go bat shit crazy, screaming in this situation. A situation clearly and most obviously meant for whispers and staying very still. He seemed to realize something, after the shock of having such bad luck calmed itself down.

“Ahh. Hehe. EHHEEHA! HAHAHA!!!”

“ … “

Only laughter could be heard. The skittering didn’t resume. The sounds of small insects chirping happily stopped. And even far off sounds, that came from predators and prey, vanished. No one, at least if they wanted to stay alive, would be so loud in this forest. Most of any noise came to be, involuntarily trough action and reaction of things fighting for their lives. Laughter? That was something rarely heard at night or even at day.

“HEY! HERE! WE’RE HEEEERRREEE!”

Dragging out the last word. His shouts echoed in Spikos mind. Like an alarm that didn’t want to stop ringing, when there was a fire burning inside your house. Her mind also, was literally on fire. Going into high gears, from the adrenaline being released.

“What are you doing! Stop that. Come here!”

Trying to now catch Flappy, that had lifted off from the branch. Made her skin crawl with itchy fear. She stopped carrying about the level of noise she made and sprung into the air. Flailing and landing onto another branch a bit higher. But missing the traitorous captive by an inch, as her legs weren’t obeying her fully.

“Why you! I will eat you if you don’t stop!”

“OHHH WE’RE SO WEAK!! COME AND GET US YOU STUPID BUG!!! HAHAAH!”

ZIKKIIKK-ZIIKK-ZZZZZ

With a twitch of her puffed up tail. She heard it. The skittering, a lot louder now, which fanatically homed in on them. It wouldn’t take long. Turning her head into its direction. She needed to pinch her eyelids together, till there was only a small slit left. In which the heavily shrank vertical pupil of her was barely visible.

It’s shining? It has two shinning parts on its side?! WHY IS IT SHINNIINNGGGG!

An eerie greenish light illuminated the dark forest and the dirt road the big bug was skittering on. It made Spiko’s eye shine with reflected light, as they honed the little light given off by the bug into an bright image in Spiko’s mind.

“Oh …”

There she was, starring at the horror which quickly came closer to the tree she was on.

… that’s bad.

Six spindly carapace covered legs, that still looked quite sturdy, skittered with quick motion. A rectangular head, with two small beady black eyes on each of its opposing smaller sides. With the size proportions of her whole torso. The hand sized opening in its lower part of the head, from which a single quite sharp looking tubular stinger slightly sticked out of. As in eager preparation to puncture a prey's soft succulent body and suck them dry of any blood. A bulky torso, twice as long as she was tall. But which directly was positioning its head, to perfectly get at her soft belly. If she just stood there, right before it. And worst of all, at the rear end of the torso. A separated body opening, Spiko knew very well. From it came a smell, that had now even more intensified. A smell like gone off butter. Spiko feared it more, than fire. More than being wet. More than even a visit to the evil old man with white fur, who would stick her with a sharp thing each time. And all that smell of fear, that was always present in that place.

“NOPE!”

With a yelped-out word, she jumped down to the branch with her bindle full of loot. Slightly encumbered, she ran along the branch. Jumping to the next branch, a tree over. Ignoring the squeaky feeling of her wet leather trousers, she ran along till the jump to a new tree’s branch even further away.

Pffop-pop

Hissss Sizzle

Glancing back slightly, as the smell had intensified to a horrific degree. Making her nose burn with passion at the abuse.

NOPE!

There, the big bad bug was. Slightly turned around and pointing its rear at the spot Spiko had just vacated moments earlier. The gone off butter smell was thick in the air. But surprisingly more so the smell of vinegar assaulted her nose too. As the acid burned through the thick bark of the tree, it had gotten to the soft inner wood. Melting and burning that up quite badly too.

If that hits me, I will melt. There are smoking holes everywhere on that tree! Why is it doing that! It’s not only stinky, right!

While furiously thinking of a way to get away. She ran, jumped and speed up her escape attempt.

Pffop-pop

Hissss Sizzle

Not even daring to look at the carnage wrought behind her. She ignored the repeated popping sounds, that came shortly before another burst shot out of the monstrous bugs rear. Starting to jump further, she grappled smaller off side branches with her empty hand. Giving herself a boost, by swinging. As those young branches where still quite bendable. They managed to hold her weight.

‘NOPE NOPE NOPE!’

Dexterity base stat observed. Dexterity 17

With but a passing thought, she made the floaty status window box disappear out of her line of sight. Her status finally had found a way to measure her Dexterity. Even now, that she knew what it meant. There was no time to be conscious about it. No time to be happy. There wasn’t even time to think of looking for her Flappy and how to best eat him. With all her body and mind, she needed to focus on timing her jumps and the follow up just right.

Pffop-pop

Hissss Sizzle

Pfop-pop

Hisss Sizzle

Pfp-pop

Hiss

Pfp-pp

Slowly she noticed, that the thick liquid eating away at living and death wood, grew weaker in sound. Looking swiftly backwards to check.

It’s slowing down?! And there’s less icky coming out from it? YES!

A small wary smile crept onto her face. Chuckling darkly to herself, she continued her frenzied escape.

Never trust a weakening enemy!

With determination set and muscle pains in her whole body ignored. The nightly escape continued, while a small semi-constant chuckling could be heard from her. Fighting that thing? Ha, she didn’t even bother thinking about it. All she wanted was to be elsewhere. Far-far away from that.