《Kalos》


 Arc 1 - Chapter 1

    Ba-bump.


    Ba-bump.


    I feel. I have never felt before.


    All I remember is not feeling anything. This feeling¡­ I can feel it growing.


    I need to do something. Yes, I must do something now.


    All of a sudden I opened my eyes. Something was in front of me, and I knew I had to break through it. I knew I had to get out. So I did. I moved whatever I could move, pushed and hit.


    The thing cracked as I became more frantic. Finally it broke, letting me see something else. First, the light blinded my eyes, but then I got used to it and it did not hurt. I saw many things. Many colors. I like it.


    I looked and looked until I remembered I was not fully out of the thing.


    I pushed and shoved, breaking more of the thing, and eventually fell on something. It hurt. I don¡¯t like it. But I know what to do. I have a body, and my body has legs. I need to use them.


    Slowly but surely, I maneuvered my body and used my legs to stand up. Although shaky, I was standing. I like it. Yes, now I remember, I have two legs, two wings, a head and a tail.


    Then I felt something on the sides of my head. This is sound. I heard something. I looked around me, in search of the sound. It was not hard to find.


    The sound comes from a bigger-me. It looks very familiar. The big-me approached, and I called out to it. It bowed down and licked my head, sometimes it made some sounds. It feels like inside the thing. I like it.


    I understand, big-me is important. But then my tummy hurt. I want food. I called out to big-me.


    ¡°Food! Food! Food! Food!¡±. I think it understood, because it brought a lot of food. I did not hesitate and went headfirst in the food. I bit small chunks of it, swallowing hungrily. It was delicious.


    While I was eating I heard another sound. Curious, I looked for the sound, and saw another roundish thing, just like mine, but it was not broken. It was shaking, some cracks appearing.


    Then I saw another thing, also shaking. Slowly, the things broke open and two like-me came out. Interesting. Big-me made some more sounds and helped them. I noticed big-me¡¯s color was different from the like-me¡¯s. Interesting. What is my color?


    I looked at my wings, and I think my color is red. Yes, I am a red-one. Big-me is also a red-one. The two like-me are.. green. Yes, they are green-ones. Interesting.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    The two green-ones were also very hungry like me. They approached the food and we all ate together. I like it.


    A little time passed, and I was no longer hungry, so I stopped eating the food. I walked around a bit, looking at everything.


    Almost everything around is grey, but there is a big opening. Through the opening I can see many colors. Green, brown, blue, white and even colors I don¡¯t remember. Interesting. I like it.


    Then I saw something among the blue and white above. Something was approaching. As it came nearer, I realised it was another big-me, but a green-one. It was moving its wings up and down to fly. Interesting.


    Very soon the big-green flew through the opening and landed near us. It looked at me and the like-mes while making some sounds. I really like those sounds. I looked at everyone and realised they are family. Family is important. I like it.


    But suddenly I felt heavy. So heavy. Yes, I want to sleep. I returned near my thing and laid down. Soon the like-mes cuddled with me and we slept.


    ***


    When I woke up, I felt better. I remembered much more than yesterday, and also understood what I did not before.


    I moved to stand up and felt my sisters slip off me. Unlike me, they were still sleeping soundly. I looked around the nest, and discovered Mother laying close behind us.


    I approached her excitedly. We touched heads and made happy sounds together. We stayed like that a bit, and were joined by my sisters soon after.


    A while later, Father flew inside the nest carrying a big grey prey. Food!


    Me and my siblings ran unsteadily to the food before devouring it in large bites.


    In the corner of my eye I saw Father and Mother looking at us with a happy face. When we were finished eating, Mother touched heads with Father a bit, and then flew out the nest.


    I looked at her flying in the sky. She became smaller and smaller, just a black spot in the clear blue sky, and then she disappeared. I felt sleepy again, so this time I went where Father was lying and laid down next to him. It was very comfortable and pleasantly hot. As I fell asleep, I felt my sisters cuddle with me.


    ***


    As the days went by, my thoughts became clearer and I was able to walk and run with ease, and so did my sisters. We played together all the time, chasing one another around the nest. Sometimes Mother or Father played with us.


    They know the best game. It¡¯s very simple but very fun; they move their tail around and we have to bite it. But their tails are too high to bite, so we need to jump to reach it.


    Every time one of us bite it successfully, they raise it higher. At one point it was so high none of us could bite it, until I tried moving my wings after jumping. It gave me that little bit of height I needed to bite Father¡¯s tail.


    It became harder and harder to bite the tail by jumping and moving the wings. Again, it reached a point where none of us could bite the tail. I thought really hard, and came up with an idea.


    I retreated some distance away from Mother, before running towards her tail with all my might. A few steps away, I jumped and moved my wings. I came really close, but could not reach Mother¡¯s tail.


    But my idea was good, I went way higher than before. I watched my sisters imitating me, but they couldn''t bite the tail either. What was wrong?


    ***


    The next day, I watched Mother land in the nest. I knew Father would leave soon and focused my attention on him. After touching heads with Mother, Father turned to face the entrance. He ran a small distance while moving his wings up and down, and then took off to the skies.


    That¡¯s the trick! You have to move the wings while running! Excited, I ran to Mother shouting ¡°Game! Game! Game!¡±.


    She looked at me curiously but happily complied. My sisters stopped running around to come and watch. I took a dozen steps back, facing my target seriously. Mother¡¯s tail was really high, it was not gonna be easy.


    I extended my wings and broke into a sprint. Immediately I moved my wings in an up-and-down motion with all the strength I could gather. Even before jumping I felt the difference; I was a lot lighter.


    Just a few steps away I jumped and kept moving my wings. I flew so high I almost missed the tail, but I decisively took a bite. Success!


    Not used to jumping so high I almost missed the landing, but still, I did it.


    My sisters were running around flapping their wings excitedly, while Mother looked at me with big round eyes. Hehe, she didn¡¯t expect it.

 Chapter 2

    Apparently Mother and Father really did not expect us to find the trick so fast, because even Father made big round eyes when we bit his tail every time he raised it.


    It was kind of hard when his tail touched the ceiling, but still manageable.


    I got better at landing after the first few times, now I don¡¯t even tumble on the rocks anymore. Thankfully my scales are pretty tough, or I would be hurting all over.


    I wonder what the next game is gonna be though. We all got bored of the game when Mother and Father couldn¡¯t raise their tails higher, and they stopped offering too.


    I¡¯ve seen Mother and Father acting agitated a few times together, flapping their wings and pointing to the sky with their heads, sometimes looking at us and exchanging sounds.


    Are they trying to find a new game? I don¡¯t really understand their noises, but I think they want us to fly out. I¡¯ve wanted to try before, but Father and Mother wouldn¡¯t let me or my sisters try.


    The next few days were extremely boring. Me and my sisters tried new games, but they all got old really fast. So we kept bothering Mother and Father about it, and one day they finally gave us a new game to play.


    ***


    Me and my sisters were equally apprehensive and excited for the new game. Mother was standing next to the opening, while Father was hovering close to the nest. Yes : the new game is flying!


    For some reason Mother and Father look a little uneasy, and I have no idea why. But I need to focus. I am the first to try the game, and I can¡¯t fail or I will hurt really, really bad. I don¡¯t like to fail anyway.


    I have seen Mother and Father leave the nest many times, but this time Mother was doing it slowly and carefully. She stood approximately 5 steps away from the opening, 15 steps for us. She looked at us one by one in the eyes, before facing the opening.


    She took 3 steps while flapping her wings, a big jump accompanied by a strong flap, and she was flying. This confirmed what I knew. Mother flew a few circles in the sky before landing in the nest.


    She took a moment to look at us, and I noticed the worry in her eyes. Father roared from outside, which made Mother blink a few times. She motioned for me to go with her head before taking a few steps away.


    A little giddy, I went 15 steps away from the opening. As I faced the sky, I couldn¡¯t help but stare at Father. Surely he will catch me if I fail?


    No! I will not fail. I shook my head before focusing straight ahead.


    Let¡¯s go! Step. Flap. Step. Flap. Step. Flap. Jump! Flap! Flap! Flap!


    Almost like a dream, I was flying in the sky. My apprehension and fear melted away as I relished in this new feeling. Expanses of green and brown below, blue and white above greeted my eyes, endlessly stretching to the horizon. I felt the warm embrace of the sun against my scales, and the wind washed over me like a tide. A multitude of smells entered my nose, each one giving me a different feel.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    As I put my focus below, I was stunned.


    Never had I seen so many variations of the same colors. It was so beautiful, and I knew I could go anywhere I wanted.


    I heard a roar behind me, and Father came up to fly next to me. Soon my sisters and Mother joined us. We exchanged looks and shared happy sounds. I was so happy. I love to fly and I love family.


    ***


    The following days were by far the best. Not only can we fly whenever we want, as long as we stay close to the nest that is, but playing flying games is so much fun I don¡¯t think I will ever grow bored of them.


    The most popular game is catch. One of us is the hunter, and the other two are prey. If the hunter can¡¯t catch a prey before Father or Mother comes back, they lose.


    If you get caught, you become another hunter. Then it¡¯s very hard for the last prey to escape two against one.


    I¡¯ve lost count of how many times we played catch. Every time I lose, I can¡¯t wait to try new tactics. I tend to win more often, but I can¡¯t underestimate my sisters.


    When they both hunt me, they really get vicious and don¡¯t hesitate to use their tails to hit me. One time I got a nasty hit to the head and almost fell in the big green. Thankfully it¡¯s easy to stabilize in the sky.


    ***


    As the days went by, I started to notice that the prey Mother or Father brought to the nest became smaller. Weird. Also, a few times when we were particularly hungry we devoured the prey until only bones were left.


    I remember that never happened before. As I practiced flying alone in the sky, I kept thinking about it. I looked at the nest. From far away, it¡¯s just a hole in a massive and tall rock.


    A few trees were growing here and there on the rock. Some were small, some were big. But why were some small and some big? Why are we smaller than Father and Mother?


    Out of curiosity, I went and landed near a bunch of trees. The area is above the nest and fairly large and flat, so it¡¯s a good spot to take a rest. I approached the trees and examined them.


    I came here two days ago, and they definitely got a little bigger. Could it be that the trees are growing? Hmm¡­


    Then a flash of realisation hit me. But of course! The prey is not getting smaller, we are growing and becoming bigger! It all makes sense now.


    That means we will grow as big as Father and Mother. But if that¡¯s the case, food will become a problem. Maybe I can help Father and Mother catch prey?


    With this new goal in mind, I flew down to the nest. Mother was half resting, half watching my sisters fly. The worry in her eyes has disappeared, but whenever she was in the nest she would always watch us closely.


    As I landed, she looked at me with her head tilted slightly, a curious look in her eyes. After all, ever since I could fly, except for eating and sleeping I was always flying. Very different from my sisters who liked to take a rest every so often.


    Now that I think about it, recently my sisters were no match for me in flying games, and so I spent more time flying alone.


    I stood in front of Mother and started my explanation. I made jumping and catching moves, biting down and eating, accompanied by some roars and pointing outside with my head.


    Mother watched me, confused at first, until she made big eyes at me. Satisfied at being understood, I stopped jumping and biting. Mother stood up and approached me, her eyes half closed looking at me strangely.


    As she studied me closely, sometimes sniffing me, sometimes staring into my eyes, I was a bit taken aback. Do I smell funny?


    Before the situation got too weird, Father came back to the nest, my sisters following him. Mother stopped her examination and called to Father.


    She made similar motions to me, pointing at me and making sounds I don¡¯t understand. Father made big round eyes at me, while my sisters watched curiously from the side.


    Father silently stared at me for some time, before his gaze became serious. He started exchanging short roars with Mother, which grew in volume. Mother was getting a little agitated while Father would not budge.


    I was getting worried. What on sky did I do? Mother and Father kept using sounds I did not recognize, and before I could figure it out Father loudly bellowed. It scared me and my sisters.


    Mother retreated a few steps, her head hung low, staring at me worriedly from the side, but she did not argue with Father anymore. Father called out to me and gestured to the sky, before taking off.


    I do not understand what happened at all, but at least the situation has calmed down. I took off and followed after Father, with no idea where this was going.

 Chapter 3

    As we flew away from the nest, I grew uneasy. Father was silent, simply flying and gazing at the green below.


    We were flying farther than I had ever been, and I saw the green was changing. There were less trees and more open areas, some water here and there too.


    For the first time Father broke the silence, calling me. I looked at him, and he dragged my attention to an area in the green. I focused my gaze and noticed a bunch of small green preys moving among the green. They were pretty hard to see!


    Wait, did Father take me hunting? I understand everything now!


    Father called me again, flapping his wings a bit, motioning for me to stay there.


    I yelled in the affirmative. Fixing the little greens, he dove for the one trailing behind the others. He was extremely fast, the little greens did not even realise he was there before Father caught one of them.


    They all scampered away in a hurry, and it was pretty funny how they abandoned one of theirs so easily. Father roared loudly, calling for me to come down.


    I dove down excitedly, keeping my wings folded and my head towards the ground, imitating Father. The feeling of the wind rushing against me and the increasing speed was a delight.


    When I got close to the ground, I extended my wings in one motion and almost choked and tumbled from the abrupt shock.


    I narrowly missed Father, scraping the ground a fair distance with my talons to stop myself from hitting a big rock.


    That was close! I must practice dive landing a lot more in the future.


    Father angrily shouted at me a few times while I hung my head low in shame. The little green kept struggling and yapping under his feet, getting his attention away from me.


    A little less angry, he motioned for me to come closer with his wing. As I approached, I could see the little green in more detail.


    It was green on the top and white below, with four legs, a head with two small bone-like thingies protruding out, and a tiny tail. It had no talons, no scales, no spikes, not even big teeth. It really looked frail and harmless under Father¡¯s big feet.


    The smell is very different from the big grey prey that Father and Mother bring home too. As I stood next to Father¡¯s feet, studying the little green, Father put his jaw around its neck, looking at me from the side.


    The little green got really scared and struggled even more, but Father did not even budge. He made biting motions, but never actually bit the little green. He suddenly stood up, releasing the green prey from his claws, motioning for me to go after it.


    The little green did not waste any time and fled for its life.


    Are we playing catch? Exciting!


    I took off and chased after the little green. It was pretty fast, but no match for my speed. In only a few moments I was above it. It tried to dodge left and right, but it was not very smart. I just made a big flap and turned to get in front of it, the wind almost tripping it. That took it by surprise, letting me almost effortlessly grab it.


    I guess it never played catch? That¡¯s a very basic tactic! The little green struggled wildly in my grasp, but it was really weak, only slightly shaking me. Father landed close by, looking at me expectantly.


    I did not disappoint him, going for the neck and biting down with force.


    The little green¡¯s struggle ended pretty fast, going limp.


    Success! My first hunt is a success! I thought it would be harder, but I¡¯m probably just too strong. I released the limp prey¡¯s neck, before roaring proudly to the skies.


    ***


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.


    I think I greatly exceeded Father¡¯s expectations, because he was a lot more expressive than usual. Not only did we touch heads, he also gave me a few licks and cooed, which he rarely did. It made me happy to see him happy.


    I was pretty hungry after my hunt, but Father did not want me to eat on the spot, insisting I carry the prey home. After flying while carrying prey for a bit, I think I understand why.


    Flying with and without prey is very different. Not only does it make take off and landing tricky, it also takes more effort, completely changes balance and reduces mobility. And the little green is very light, let alone with heavier preys!


    When we reached the nest, I was way more tired than usual. No wonder Mother and Father rested a lot! As me and Father landed, my sisters ran around me happily, looking at my prey and sniffing it.


    Mother came over in a hurry from the back of the nest, the worry in her eyes slowly replaced by happiness. She touched heads with me, cooing loudly and licking my face all over.


    I really did not think she would be so worried about me! I¡¯m not sure why but I don¡¯t like her being worried. I must show her how strong I am so she will never worry again!


    I freed myself from her licking, roaring to get her attention. As she looked at me, I erected my chest high up, wings fully extended and roared as loud as I could, showing off my might.


    Except for Father they were all pretty surprised. My sisters started imitating me, while Mother went back to licking me. It did not really work as planned.


    ***


    After all that happened that day, I was really tired. I took a few bites of little green meat, and it was pretty good. Sweeter than the grey prey¡¯s, but not as juicy. I left the prey to my sisters to finish before going to sleep in my spot.


    The next few days were mostly spent hunting with Father or Mother. Sometimes I watched them hunt, sometimes they watched me. We mostly hunted big greys and little greens, sometimes we found new prey and hunted those instead.


    I got to try lots of different meats, and I found that the big grey was just the best. Tasty and juicy, and there¡¯s a lot of it too!


    I also spotted some big things, and they did not look like prey. They made me wary, but as soon as they spotted us they ran away, which confused me. Isn¡¯t anything that runs away prey?


    But apart from a few loud roars, Mother and Father never chased them. That¡¯s too bad, some of them really looked like they had lots of meat on them. But there¡¯s certainly a good reason for not chasing them, I just don¡¯t know it yet.


    When I was watching Mother or Father hunting I paid a lot of attention. Father likes hunting in open areas, diving from high in the sky, using the speed to break the prey¡¯s balance on impact, and go straight for the neck while the prey is stunned.


    Mother prefers to hunt in more covered areas with a lot of trees, picking isolated targets and using the trees as cover, then silently dropping feet first on the prey, leaving it incapacitated or even dead on impact.


    Both styles are fun, but I prefer Father¡¯s. The feeling I get diving from the sky is just addicting and never gets old.


    After a few days my sister started coming too, and hunting together became our new favorite game. The food issue I was worrying about was resolved, now each of us could eat our fill. In turn Mother and Father stopped bringing food to the nest, and we just ate preys on the spot most of the time.


    ***


    On one morning, I went hunting in the forest with Mother. I flew in front, a few flaps above the trees, while Mother flew in the back high above.


    This was how hunting went recently, my parents stayed back and just watched me do the hunting when it was my turn.


    I flew above the region for a while, searching for fresh prey. Then a bright color caught my eye. I turned and headed towards it to investigate. On a closer look, it was a little green, but it has a pink bit on its head. I have seen pink prey before, but little greens do not have any pink on them. Strange.


    I wanted to find something else than a little green to hunt, but I really wanna find out what this pink is. I found a trajectory among the tree branches, positioned myself and dropped. I broke branches in my fall which alerted the prey, but I dropped too fast for it to react.


    I felt its bones break and it couldn¡¯t move at all. If it was Mother, she would have left a bloody mess on the ground instead.


    I studied the little green choking and spitting blood, and finally saw what that pink thing was. A small pink thing attached to its right ear, rectangular in shape and completely flat, with some tiny black, ant-like traces on it.


    I look closely at those traces. They were arranged in a line, some traces identical.


    That is a very weird thing to have attached to your ear. How did it get there? What is it for?


    The little green died at some point, but I did not really care, more interested in this thing.


    Maybe try sniffing it? I gave it a try, but it did not have a particular smell. Wait. I looked around while sniffing the air. There is a smell I never encountered before, and it comes from somewhere close.


    I left my prey to walk around the area and sniff out the smell. Nose close to the ground, I started approaching a bush where the smell was stronger.


    But as I got a few steps away from the bush, the weirdest thing happened.


    The bush stood up and started running away. What on the sky is this thing?


    I don¡¯t know but if it runs away, it is prey!


    For a bush, it ran fast. I thought I was going to lose it, but then it tripped and fell. My chance! I jumped on the bush to restrain it, but didn¡¯t go for the kill yet. The bush started struggling and making weird noises.


    I sniffed it again, but it did not smell like a bush at all. Maybe it isn¡¯t a bush?


    Without using too much force, I picked it up from around the middle and shook it left and right. As I shook it, branches and leaves were sent flying all around.


    I put it back down, and now I understood. It was in fact not a bush, but a creature with two legs, two arms and a head. This thing is really weird.


    The head and the hands are white, the top of the head covered with long brown fur, and the rest a mix of green, grey and brown. There¡¯s some round things on the chest too. Everything about it is strange.


    As I studied it, the creature recovered from the shaking. It looked at me and I saw terror and fear in its eyes. Funny. I watched it get up and try to run away, but it kept stumbling and falling. So it walks on two legs? Just like me, but it is pretty pathetic.


    I was about to go play with it, when I heard Mother¡¯s roar above.


    Ah, I got carried away and forgot my original goal. The prey fell over on hearing Mother¡¯s roar, and I wondered if it could get up again.


    Maybe I should help it? This prey is really funny, I¡¯ll call it the funny prey.


    I turned around and hurried to the dead little green, picked it up and flew out of the forest, joining Mother who looked at me curiously, before heading home together. What a great day.

 Chapter 4

    After my encounter with funny prey, I started looking for it when we went out hunting, but I could never go too far from Mother or Father, which really limited my search capabilities.


    I¡¯ve explained to them that I wanted to go exploring, but they would never let me go alone. I thought about it, and realised that when I was doing the hunting, I could go wherever and Father or Mother would just follow me.


    I waited a few days until I was hunting alone with Father to really start my search. First, I went back where I first encountered the funny prey. The smell was faint but still there. It really was unique among all the other smells. I followed the trail on the ground for a bit, until I reached a river.


    The funny prey¡¯s smell was all along one side of the river, so I guessed it just followed it to somewhere. The river is very easy to follow from the sky so I stopped walking and flew instead.


    I followed the river for a while, looking for any hint of funny prey. Then a strong smell entered my nose; blood. I landed and examined the scene.


    The left side of the river had funny prey¡¯s trail going straight, until it met something and crossed the river. I sniffed around a bit and recognized the smell. It¡¯s those pesky jumpers!


    They¡¯re small and weak, standing on two clawed legs, armed with sharp teeth and two small clawed arms. They also have a tail, and are a distinct orange color.


    They are no threat alone, but they always travel in small groups. What is annoying is that if you catch one of them they won¡¯t run away but attack you instead. Also, they don¡¯t taste good and like to jump around.


    Did funny prey get attacked by jumpers? Probably, even a jumper can catch such a weak prey. But the blood smells like a jumper¡¯s¡­ Strange.


    I smell more blood on the other side. Looking at the sky, Father did not have any reaction to what I did, a lot less worried than Mother. I was free to do as I wished!


    I took off and followed the blood¡¯s trail, it would certainly lead me somewhere interesting. I thought it would be easy enough, but the trail went everywhere and nowhere. First it went right, then left, right again, then it went in a circle¡­


    A few times I even backtracked without realising it. I was getting annoyed and thought of dropping the search when I picked up noises. I headed for the source, and found jumpers making a racket around a large stone.


    What is going on? I circled around out of sight while looking more closely.


    The stone had a small opening on one side, and the jumpers were crowding around it. There were traces of blood near the crack, and from time to time a jumper tried to go in the crack, only to jump away dripping blood.


    Are they fighting a stone and losing? I need to investigate this stone.


    I counted, and there are 7 jumpers, not that I would be scared of any amount of jumpers, but it¡¯s important to count the targets.


    They were focused on the stone, not paying attention to their surroundings.


    I picked a good angle, and dived. As a few of them turned to look, I was already on top of them, extending my wings in a flash.


    The two closest ones lost their footing and fell, the others braced against the wind. I landed roughly on the closest one, my left foot crushing his neck. Right after landing I jumped on the next one before it got up, tearing off his head with my jaw. So weak!


    That got the rest all riled up. They ran at me from the left, front and right.


    I used Mother¡¯s technique; first I stabilized myself on the ground, then twisted my body right in a circle violently, sending a strong tail swipe on the jumpers.


    I hit three of them, the last two jumping out of the way, but of the ones I did hit, one stopped moving and the other two walked weird. They didn¡¯t try any more attack and fled after that.


    I couldn''t care less where those pests went. I approached the stone to study it. The blood was fresh here, different from the dried blood on the trail. They definitely only got here recently.


    I sniffed around the stone, and recognized funny prey¡¯s smell. Ah! I get it now. The jumpers were fighting funny prey, not the stone. Is it hiding in the crack?


    As I moved closer, I saw funny prey peaking out. Our eyes met and it cried in surprise, jumping back in its hiding spot. Found you! I ran excitedly and peaked inside the crack.


    Danger! I jumped back, a shiny spike narrowly missing my left eye. Wow! Funny prey is not as weak as it looks. I must be more careful. I really, really want to catch it now!


    I looked inside the crack from a few steps away. Funny prey was huddled at the other end of the crack, the shiny spike on one of its hands. It was also shouting weird noises but I ignored it, focusing on the spike.


    Did it grow a spike on its hand? Very strange. I took two steps to look closer, agitating funny prey. It was waving the spike left and right, giving me a better look.


    Ah! It did not grow a spike, it was holding it. Did it pick it up somewhere? That¡¯s really smart, I never thought of holding something and hitting stuff.Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    This prey is really too interesting to eat!


    But how am I gonna make it come out? I can reach it easily but I don¡¯t want to get hurt. Think, think, think¡­ Maybe I can pick up a spike too?


    I looked around but did not see any shiny spikes. Use something else? But what? I would need something long and narrow to reach inside. Long and narrow¡­


    But of course! I took off and approached a large tree nearby. I landed on a long branch, narrow enough to get inside the crack, but big enough for me to hold. I held it firmly with my feet and started wobbling up and down.


    Crack! The branch couldn¡¯t bear it and broke neatly from the tree. Happy, I landed near the crack, with the branch in tow. Funny prey looked really scared now, making random noises and shaking.


    Standing on one leg two steps from the crack, I picked up the broken end of the branch with my right feet and stuck it inside. I pushed it back and forth, eliciting funny noises from my prey, but it was not working.


    I need to push the prey out, not in. Hmm¡­ I took another look at the crack, and noticed it was also cracked open on the top, although the opening was a lot smaller.


    I can push from there! I picked the branch with both feet and jumped up, landing on top of the stone. I held my branch with one feet again, but it was really hard to stick it inside the crack.


    It took me a while, but I found the trick. I moved the branch left and right, eventually pushing funny prey out. It scrambled away in panic, shouting.


    Time to play catch! I took off and landed in front of it, before it reached the trees. In its panic, it tried to change direction and run away, but tripped and fell on its back instead.


    It scooted backwards, waving the spike and screaming. I made a strong flap, sending dust, wind and dirt flying on the prey. It shielded its eyes and couldn¡¯t see me.


    I jumped and landed on it, trying not to crush it. As I expected it tried to hit me with the spike; I bit it and threw it away. The funny prey was struggling and screaming loudly, hitting my head with its weak arms. Annoying!


    I breathed in, and roared to its face. See how it feels? The prey went stiff and stopped struggling, just protecting its head with its arms, making weak sounds and sniffing.


    This is too funny! Why is it sniffing? Is there a nice smell? I sniffed around but there wasn¡¯t anything noteworthy. I focused my sniffing on the prey, sniffing a bit of everything. For some reason it made more noises.


    Then I sniffed its right leg, and smelled something different. Something tasty. I put my nose directly against its leg and took deep sniffs.


    The smell came from a small bulge on the side.


    As I nibbled at it, funny prey tried to push my head away with its weak arms. Yes, there¡¯s something tasty there! I got rougher and shook my head holding its leg, in an attempt to get the tasty out.


    Funny prey screamed and screamed, until a ¡®crack!¡¯ rang out. Funny prey flew a few steps away, tumbling on the ground, while I held some green-brown patch of fur in my jaws.


    Ah! Did I hurt it? I looked at funny prey and it seemed alright, still making a few sounds. It didn¡¯t get up though. Eh, looks ok enough.


    I looked left and right, and found the content of its fur: a bunch of long red, tasty smelling things. Tasties! I ran over excitedly and ate them one by one.


    It tastes like meat, but dry with a special taste to it, and it was really crunchy. Delicious!


    In barely a few moments all of it went down my tummy. This food is really good, I want more! I looked at funny prey, who was trying to get up, and jumped on it.


    It made a ¡®poof!¡¯ and fell back down. I sniffed it all over again, but there was no more tasty smell, only its own bad smell. Ow, no more tasties?


    Kinda bummed out, I stepped off its back, just keeping a foot on it so it doesn¡¯t run away.


    Funny prey breathed in large gulps, while I raised my head high up to look around. I took some sniffs left and right, but didn¡¯t pick up anything except the few dead jumpers; the blood was masking any other prey.


    I looked back down at funny prey. It doesn¡¯t smell good, but maybe it tastes good? Let¡¯s investigate. I approached the back of its head and licked the white bits.


    Funny prey cried out while I reeled back in disgust. Bah! How can something taste so bad? I am never eating this thing!


    Suddenly, I felt something. I stopped and focused. Bump. I felt it again; it¡¯s the ground. It¡¯s shaking. Bump. It increased. Prey stopped struggling to look at me with wet eyes. Bump. It increased again. Something is approaching.


    I jumped back and nervously looked around the area. Bump.


    I heard something crack. My eyes darted to the other end of the clearing, and that¡¯s when I saw it.


    A massive, pink and black jumper-like creature, breached into the clearing. It was even bigger than Father or Mother. The trees looked small next to it!


    It first saw the dead jumpers, then us. Danger! Danger!


    It opened its huge jaw and let out a roar before sprinting towards us.


    All kinds of alarms rang in my head, and I was about to take off when I remembered prey. It was scared stiff on the ground. I knew if I left it there it was dead for sure.


    I took off and roughly grabbed prey with my feets, hopefully not killing it but I had no time to be careful. I looked right and saw the massive figure just a few steps away. I flapped and flapped as my life depended on it, increasing the distance between us.


    When I thought that was it, the big scary jumped towards me, its huge jaw about to close on my legs. I put my entire focus on my left wing, and made my strongest flap ever, narrowly dodging the jaw as it clacked shut.


    Devoid of wings, the big scary fell back down to the ground, while I was already flying up high when it turned to roar at me.


    Phew! That was too scary! I was going to look for Father when I heard his massive roar of anger. I turned around to see him coming down on the big scary.


    Father was pissed. I never saw him so angry before. I looked at the big black, and it looked scared of Father. There were claw marks and missing patches of black fur on its back.


    Father was hovering above the big black, and they roared at each other,


    whenI saw something amazing; Father reeled his head back a bit, then spewed down super bright stuff on big black¡¯s head.


    It cried out in pain and I smelled a delicious smell even from there.


    While the big black was blinded, Father turned with a strong flap and violently shoved the big black from the side, sending it falling down.


    Before it could get up, Father dropped on its back and firmly held it with his talons. It looked painful. Father made rapid and powerful flaps, lifting the massive thing off the ground, before throwing it away in the trees.


    Crack! Crash! The big black tumbled in the trees, breaking a few and roaring in pain. Father reeled back his head again, and spewed a ball of super bright stuff at it.


    Boom! The entire area echoed with big black¡¯s painful cries and the cracking of trees. Father roared at the retreating figure of the big black, but did not pursue.


    That will teach you! Father is amazing. I knew he was the strongest, but not that strong. And what is the super bright stuff? I must know!


    Father landed and called out to me. As I got closer I smelled the delicious smell of the big black, and felt the area was hotter.


    Before I landed, I dropped the prey on the ground to not crush it. It was alive but not in the best shape.


    I ran to Father and we touched heads, while Father cooed and licked my head. As the tension went down, I really felt relieved. In only a single, tiny moment, had I messed up or been too slow, the big black would have caught me.


    I should never have saved funny prey. It slowed me down, and I almost died because of it! Why on sky did I save it? In that moment it made sense, but looking back I don¡¯t understand at all.


    We were interrupted when shouts and the rustling of leaves came from the other side of the clearing. A group of similar creatures to funny prey entered the clearing, around 6 of them.


    Father jerked his head in their direction and made a warning roar.


    They stopped in their tracks, letting me get a look. They were completely different from nice prey, and I felt danger from them.


    Each one had a different appearance, holding some kinds of ¡®spikes¡¯.


    They did not approach us, and Father signaled me to take off. As we flew away, I looked back and saw them gathering around nice prey, before it was too far to see anything.

 Chapter 5

    Too much happened that day. When I touched down in the nest, only then did I realise how much that one flap cost me. Despite my immense excitement and curiosity, I fell from fatigue on the spot, not even noticing what was going on around me.


    ***


    Opening my eyes I saw the grey wall of our nest, the moon¡¯s light reflecting upon it, and my head resting on Mother¡¯s tail.


    Craning my head to the sides, I saw my sisters sleeping, covering me in their green.


    I must have made everyone really worried¡­ That flap, back then I did not realise but it was different from any other. Something was not the same, a different, unknown feeling.


    I just could not point it out. Let¡¯s not think about it for now. My sisters were sleeping peacefully, and I envied them, being unable to fall back to sleep.


    They have an almost identical appearance from afar, but were easy to differentiate if you paid attention.


    On my left is my sister Spiky. She has very pointy scales and sometimes it hurts when you lick. Her tail has more spikes than Mother or my other sister too, so I call her Spiky.


    On my right is my other sister, Friendly. She has shorter scales with a lighter tint of green. She is not as rough as Spiky. At least she doesn¡¯t always aim for the head with her tail, so I call her Friendly.


    I licked Friendly¡¯s nose, and she twitched her head in response.


    I intensified my licking, which woke her up. She tried to get away but I wouldn¡¯t let her, so then she licked my head in retaliation.


    The agitation woke Spiky. She blinked a few times before joining the licking battle against me. The battle ended with my defeat, and mother waking up to us tumbling around.


    ***


    After a few bouts of licks, I started showing them father¡¯s battle with the big black, switching characters as I went through it. Spiky and Friendly were excited all throughout my performance, while Mother watched silently.


    I tried spewing the super bright stuff, like Father did, but I had no idea how to do it, so I turned to Mother. Surely she would know?


    I called out to Mother, and did the best imitation of Father I could. I reeled back my head while lifting my chest, before lowering it back in one motion, spewing some spittle. Hopefully she understands¡­


    I had to repeat it 3 times before she understood, while my sisters copied my every move. Her eyes enlarged for a short moment, only to just shake her head, not explaining anything. She stood up, walking to a corner.


    But I was not discouraged in the least. I ran in front of her, throwing complaints her way. She looked down in my eyes for a moment before shaking her head once more.This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.


    I kept complaining until she bent down and roared at me, leaving me stunned in place. She fixed my eyes for a long time while I dared not move a claw. Then, she licked my face before walking past me.


    Spiky and Friendly hurried over, touching heads and comforting me, while Mother laid down in a corner. In their embrace, my mood improved a little. But still, this bad feeling lingered inside.


    Why did Mother react this way? As far as I recall, she had never roared at me in the past. I can only ask Father and hope for the best.


    ***


    As the sun rose up in the sky, Father came home, dust scattering around as he landed. He and Mother touched heads before she took off flying.


    I ran up to him excitedly and asked to be shown how to spew the super bright stuff. He looked me in the eyes and shook his head before walking away. Just like Mother, he did not want to teach me.


    I did not try convincing him further, as that would only be asking for trouble.


    I took off dejected, and called out to my sisters to play.


    I focused on improving my dodging while we played catch, which I found lacking after my experience with the big black.


    I was getting really hungry when Mother¡¯s figure appeared from the horizon, coming down to land in the nest. When Father flew out, I followed him to go hunting some tasty prey. Spiky and Friendly continued playing together.


    While we flew far above ground, I scrutinized the forest for any hint of the big black or other threats, relieved at finding none. We reached a large open area where a pack of big greys was eating grass.


    Perfect, exactly the prey I needed. Father called me and signaled to dive down. He aimed for a large one, while I chose a smaller one, around medium size.


    I retracted my wings and dove, the grass on the ground coming closer every moment, the wind howling in my ears as my speed increased.


    This is it, the thrill of the hunt!


    Father caught his prey, alerting the whole group. Before my target could take a step I was onto it. I shoved it to the ground with my momentum and clamped my jaw on its neck in a flash. I used force and crushed its throat, the delicious taste of fresh blood entering my mouth.


    It struggled for a few moments, its brethren running away in the distance. Soon it went limp, becoming my food.


    ***


    Burp! That hit the spot. I stepped away from the half eaten carcass, leaving the rest to scavengers. I looked around, saw that Father was still eating, and took a walk. The big grey group had long left the area, leaving a large trail of stepmarks crossing past a collection of massive rocks.


    On the opposite side of those rocks was the forest, large trees covering the ground in their shade. As I came closer to take a rest under the trees, I sniffed a familiar smell. Funny prey!


    I looked back to make sure Father wasn¡¯t paying attention before investigating. Nose to the ground, I followed the smell to a small clearing.


    There I saw funny prey kneeling on the ground, doing something.


    What funny thing is it gonna do this time? I approached with large steps, funny prey turning around to cry in surprise. Only now did I notice it was a similar creature and not funny prey.


    It was stockier and did not have the long fur on the head. I stopped for a moment before the prey ran away. Who cares if it¡¯s not the same one, if it runs away it is prey!


    I ran after it with excitement in each step, while the prey screamed left and right. I got closer, only a few more steps away, when the prey jumped over a small bush, too small to be any hindrance to me. I¡¯m going to catch you!


    I stepped over the bush, my feet landing on something that did not feel right. Graaah! Painful shocks coursed around my body, stunning and tripping me down.


    The pain was numbing everything, stars in my eyes and ants furiously biting me inside out. I kept crying in pain when I breathed in something purple or blue.


    I felt heavier and tired amongst the unbearable pain.


    I could not stand it any longer, my vision darkening.

 Chapter 6

    Water splashing and wood creaking filled my ears as I woke up. My vision hazy, I could barely make out my surroundings. Some kind of dark room?


    My body felt heavy, like something was coiled around it. I moved, at least tried to. The stuff on me clinked and I was stuck. What?


    I moved again with the same result; some clinks. I turned my head to look, the bits of white light falling down helping me see in the darkness.


    It looks like some vines? Why are they so heavy?


    I bit on them. Ow, those vines are super strong! My teeth hurt, the vines too solid to cut.


    I glanced around the room, making out some wooden walls. What is this place? I remember chasing one of those funny preys in the forest. Something really hurt then everything went black. How did I get here?


    Ah, it doesn¡¯t matter. I must get out of this place and go back before Father notices. I pushed on the vines, testing their resilience. This won¡¯t be easy.


    I flung myself to the side, the vines clinking. Again! The vines pressed on my scales with each strike, a searing pain growing. Again, and again, no matter how many times or how strong I striked, the vines would not budge.


    Pain washed over my back and arms. How can vines be so hard? I pushed harder, yelps escaping my mouth. The loud clinking of the vines echoed in the room as I struggled.


    Let me go! I pushed with all my strength, wincing at the pain.


    ¡®Tonk, tonk, tonk¡¯. Uh? I stopped to listen at the sound. That came from somewhere in front. The sound stopped behind the wall.


    Then the wall cracked open slowly, a warm light spilling into the room. The prey I had chased in the forest stepped inside, one hand holding a stick with super bright stuff; fire.


    What? I stared at it with large eyes. What is it doing here and how can it use Father¡¯s power? The light shone on the multiple scars covering its face.


    ¡°Oh oh oh, the little monster is awake?¡±, the creature spoke. I had no idea what it meant, but it could not be good. I don¡¯t like where this is going.


    I striked at the vines again, even more motivated to get out.


    ¡°Hehe, you won¡¯t break those machalite chains like that.¡±, the creature said with a toothy grin. This bad feeling in my gut grew. It took a step.


    I roared at it. Don¡¯t come closer!


    The creature reeled back, its face crunching in anger, ¡°You little piece of shit, let me teach you some manners.¡± With its other hand it took out a spike.


    My eyes enlarged at the sight. It¡¯s going to hit me! I desperately flung myself against the vines ignoring all pain. Break! Break! Break!


    I slipped and scraped the floor as I striked, but the vines held strong.


    ¡°Hehehehehe, are you scared little monster?¡±, the creature walked closer and ignored my roars. I bit at the air, hoping it would scare it away somehow, but it stopped in front of me, brandishing the spike.


    ¡°Have a taste of my pain!¡±, the creature screamed. The spike bashed on my head. Before I could register the hit it hit me again. And again.


    Go away! I screamed and flung myself around.


    ¡°This is for my daughter!¡±


    But the monster hit me again and again, the pain piercing through my head.


    ¡°This is for my daughter!¡±


    I felt blood flow on my face as the monster howlered. Stop it! I screamed myself hoarse but it would not stop.


    My vision hazed and my senses numbed. The monster will kill me. I am going to die. All the sounds blended into each other, each hit sending jolts of pain through my body and forcing a scream out.


    I thought I was gonna die when another monster ran into the room. It held back the first one before they both screamed at each other. I could not make out anything they said.


    I held by a shred onto my consciousness, a ringing in my head obscuring all the noises around. I felt like I was floating on a cloud, about to fall at any moment, my breathing the only proof I was still alive.


    Father, Mother...  I remembered their faces, the joy I felt seeing them for the first time. They taught me everything from flying to hunting, yet I was wary of them and even betrayed them. Spiky, Friendly¡­ We were born together, always stayed together, always played together. We did everything together. Until I learned how to hunt and wanted to do my own things. How despicable. I never deserved any of them. I had the best family under the sky, yet I still betrayed them. I¡¯m sorry everyone. Only now of all times, do I realize it...


    Then water splashed on my face, a pain worse than a million ants biting me inside out invading my mind.


    I screamed out one last time, before everything went dark.


    ***


    I woke up thirsty, hungry and my face itching. Water splashed and wood creaked. The room was dim, sunlight flowing through the roof, with no traces of the monsters.


    I¡¯m still alive? I thought I was dead for sure!


    Thank the sky, I live to fly another day. I moved, the vines clinking.


    If only I could fly¡­


    A smell entered my nose. I looked down to see a wooden object. What is that thing? It was circular and hollow, a white liquid filling it, some stuff floating at the top. It looks edible.


    I risked a lick. Ugh! I reeled back at the taste. It¡¯s like water mixed with grass, but worse. I stared at the bucket. I did not want to eat this disgusting thing, but my hunger and thirst were too strong. After all, there was nothing else I could eat.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.


    I barfed the pasty substance with my eyes closed, hoping I would grow used to the taste. I didn¡¯t. It was the worst food I ever ate, but I would die sooner than later if I did not eat it. In a few moments I finished the food, leaving the bucket empty.


    I wish I never have to eat this thing again. Did the monsters give me this food? Why would they do that after trying to kill me?


    I glanced at the empty room. What do I do now? There¡¯s nothing here, and those vines are unbreakable. I tried to think of something to get out, but I could not do anything.


    It took a long moment for me to accept reality. I was the monsters¡¯ prey, and I could not escape.


    ***


    All this time passed with nothing happening. Eventually I had to relieve myself, I couldn¡¯t hold it anymore. The smell of poop and pee filled the room, worsening this already terrible situation.


    The only thing to distract me was listening. So listened I did.


    First were the noise of water splashing and wood creaking. Focusing further on listening, I could hear monsters above. Sometimes they spoke, some sounds coming up frequently like ¡°last night¡± and ¡°rathalos¡±.


    What did they mean? It seems important, since they keep repeating it. More importantly, what will they do to me?


    The sound of steps coming down cut my thoughts short. I struggled against the vines, by instinct more than reason. A monster is coming! As much as I hoped for something to happen, when it came to it I was not ready.


    The wall creaked open, the dim light revealing a monster I had never seen. I yelped in fear, slipping as I pushed against the vines. But the monster did not say anything, it just entered holding another bucket.


    It only had one arm, its head devoid of any fur. What is it going to do to me? It put the bucket down before picking a long stick from outside the room. I jumped at the sight. The monster will hit me again!


    It reached to me with the stick. I closed my eyes and braced for the hit, but it never came. The monster only pulled back the empty bucket. Uh? I froze for a second, the monster pushing the other bucket in front of me. What?


    The monster put back the stick before picking up the empty bucket and leaving, the wall closing. Soon the sound of steps going up reached my ears.


    For long moments I did not dare move or make a sound. Did the monster just come, give me food, and leave? I looked at the bucket and sure enough it was the disgusting white, thick substance.


    Why are the monsters keeping me here? What is the point? I can not make sense of this situation. My thoughts jumbled in my head, unable to come up with any reason for the monsters¡¯ behavior.


    I closed my eyes and breathed slowly. What would Father do in my place? Away from home, unable to break free or use fire, surrounded by monsters and with no one to rescue me. What would he do? Think, think, think.


    In moments I found the answer, a grin creeping on my face.


    As clear as the light of day.


    I opened my eyes, gaze falling to the bucket. I wolfed it down with a newfound determination, ignoring the taste and pasty texture.


    What would Father do? He would survive.


    ***


    Days and nights passed. The only monster that came was the one-armed food monster. I never saw the one that hit me again, or any other monster.


    When the food monster came, it never said anything.


    At first, I was on my toes when the monster opened the wall, always struggling in those clinking black vines. But after many instances of this, with no harm done to me, I relaxed a little.


    Sometimes it stayed a while to watch me, my gaze never leaving it even as I ate. To say it was weird would be an understatement. It just¡­ Stood there. A few times I even saw some droplets falling from its eyes.


    Is it sick or something? The smell in the room was also getting worse, my poop and pee piling up. I could not use my nose anymore, only breathing through my mouth.


    How long will this last? I also have this feeling recently¡­


    I looked somewhere on my left. Like I¡¯m moving farther and farther from home every moment.


    I wondered how long I could bear this situation, when my ears twitched, a new noise entering them. I focused, and the noise became clearer. Something deep and very far, like a ¡®dong¡¯. It stopped. What was that?


    I thought it was my imagination when I heard it again some moments later, clearer and closer. The monsters above all started running and shouting ¡°Land! Land!¡±.


    What¡¯s going on? The sound repeated a few times, each time a little closer.


    Is it getting closer, or are we getting closer?


    The sound did not repeat again but the monsters still ran and shouted, the sounds too confusing for me to make out anything they said.


    Did something bad happen? Moments passed while I anguished over what could be happening, shifting in the vines. Then, I heard faint sounds from far away.


    Those were very hard to describe. The closest I could think of was a large group of big greys running. Then a loud ¡®Bwooooh¡¯ came from above, blasting my ears.


    What on sky was that? My ears soon recovered, the faint sounds now a lot louder and closer. A few monsters shouted on the left, before I heard the clinking of vines going down and something splashing in the water.


    What? The whole wooden structure shook to a stop. We were moving all along! But where are we now? The sound of large objects moving came from above, rustling on the floor. The monsters ran and shouted.


    From outside came a wide variety of noises, most of which I had no idea what they could be. I was only sure of one thing; a lot of monsters were there.


    Noise came from straight above me. The roof opened, the sun¡¯s light filling the room and blinding me. My eyes had barely adjusted when I felt myself being lifted and heard a rhythmic clinking.


    I screamed and struggled against the vines, shaking left and right in the air while I looked around to get a grasp on things.


    As I came out the room I saw a huge, long structure made of wood, with massive white wings reaching for the sky, monsters scrambling about.


    About 6 monsters pushed on a round stump with sticks, hauling me higher and higher. What is going on? What are they doing?


    While I struggled, a cacophony of foreign noises filled my ears. It overwhelmed me. The monsters raised me higher in the air, and I saw an incredible scene¡­


    So many monsters!


    By the endless sky! Hundreds upon hundreds of monsters walked in a massive nest of stone and wood, with some big greys pulling large wooden boxes filled with various weird objects, everything combining into an ocean of colors and sounds, the smells all blending into each other.


    Only when I heard a big ¡®thud!¡¯ followed by a ¡®clank!¡¯ did I look down, to see the monsters had closed the roof¡¯s opening and the clinking sound had stopped.


    Another box pulled by two big greys approached the long wooden structure. The monsters stopped it in front of me, some distance below.


    Everything confused me, happening too fast for me to comprehend; I had no idea what to do except struggle. A group of monsters holding buckets approached and splashed me with water. I cried out, recalling that terrible night, only it did not sting this time. Why did they do that?


    Some monsters gathered wood, cut into long, flat parts or rods. They put planks against the wooden structure, forming a path into the box. The rods were placed below me in a line, planks put on top. What are they doing with all this wood?


    Another ¡®clank!¡¯ rang out and the 6 monsters pushed again, this time not pulling me up but lowering me onto the planks. I touched down, and a monster threw a long black vine to the ones below. They pulled on it, dragging me towards the box.


    Are they trying to put me in that box? I tried to resist but I could not stop them in this position, and fell into the box. The monsters put more black vines on my body while I shifted back and forth. What is going on!


    I struggled but only hurt myself. The monsters pulled out some kind of whitish cover, pulling it over the box and blocking my vision. They pulled it tight before the big greys moved, the box moving forwards. Just what on sky is going on! What are they going to do to me?


    Even if I could not see, I could still hear and smell. We passed by swarms of monsters, turning left or right. The smells were inumerable, but many had to come from delicious food, my belly rumbling just imagining how they could taste like. Sometimes I heard the odd sounds of creatures, or monsters walking in sync.


    The box moved slowly, reaching a less crowded area. The light above dimmed, as if something huge blocked the sun¡¯s light. Where are they taking me?


    A few moments later, the atmosphere changed. I had this ominous feeling, sending a chill down my spine. Like I had entered another world.


    A world full of danger.

 Chapter 7

    We entered a new place, I was sure of it. The air was cooler, the noises were far fewer and the smells less abundant. Although the faint smell of blood did not reassure me.


    As the box kept moving forward, the monsters guiding the box talked in low voices. A few words came up frequently, like ¡°Rathalos¡±, ¡°Boss¡±, and ¡°The miss¡±. What could that mean?


    Everything about this situation told me it could not end well. How bad it would end, I did not know. But screaming or struggling was useless, therefore I laid still and hoped for the best. Maybe that way they would forget about me?


    A few moments later, a monster shouted in our direction.The box stopped and they all talked together. Soon after something big clanked, a rhythmic clinking following, before another big clank.


    The sounds stopped and the box resumed moving while the monsters talked. What is going on now? The box turned left, and it sounded like the ground changed to sand or dirt, the sun shining through the cover again.


    A new area? The monsters moved the box a little further before stopping it. What now? What did they bring me here for? The cover was removed and the sudden brightness blinded me for a short moment.


    When I opened my eyes a red ball exploded in my face, blue purple air filling my view. This again! I held my breath, but when the air dispersed another ball exploded. I couldn¡¯t hold it any longer and breathed in the sleepy air. My mind went groggy, and soon everything was dark.


    ***


    ¡°I can¡¯t wait to see it!¡±, a young woman exclaimed.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry young miss, his cell is very close. You will soon see it,¡± a bald man walking alongside the young miss said, his left arm missing.


    The young miss covered her mouth laughing, the golden tiara on her head tingling.


    ¡°When I was told you came to see me again, I was just going to have you thrown out.¡± She smirked at the man. ¡°But, I heard an interesting report from the docks about you. Who would have thought the useless hunter would bring me such a nice surprise!¡± She exclaimed with wide eyes.


    ¡°A mighty Rathalos, and a child at that!¡± She added, lifting a finger up.


    ¡°Really makes me wonder how you pulled that one, old man.¡± She stared at the man, half grinning.


    Unshaken, the man answered. ¡°I won¡¯t lie to you, young miss. It was pure luck that we captured him. We were even luckier to escape the continent alive.¡± The hunter said, his voice a little grim. ¡°Most of us, at least.¡±


    ¡°Hm yeah I guess the parents would be pissed,¡± she said in a bored voice, ¡°Well anyway it looks like we¡¯ve arrived.¡±


    On the left, a huge metal gate appeared, with two regular doors on each side. Guards were standing by while servants came and went through the doors. One of the guards with different clothes noticed their arrival and stepped up to the miss.


    ¡°Good morning young miss. We have inspected the monster and it is indeed a young Rathalos. The observation deck is ready.¡± The guard turned to the old hunter. ¡°Is this gentleman allowed inside?¡±


    ¡°Yes he is, now let¡¯s go see this Rathalos.¡± The young miss said with a grin.


    ¡°Of course, please follow me young miss.¡± The guard bowed before walking to the left door. They took a flight of stairs and arrived at a long corridor, the sun shining through the right wall¡¯s blinders. While they walked, servants made way and bowed. ¡°Now Jonah, tell me what you know about this Rathalos.¡± the young miss asked the old man.


    The old hunter walked up beside the miss, ¡°Unfortunately young miss, we do not know much. He is young, at most two months old, is healthy and has no signs of any injury. That¡¯s about it.¡±


    ¡°Can it breath fire?¡± She asked with wide eyes and a smile.


    ¡°I do not believe so. From what I know, Raths learn to use fire by 6 to 8 months old, Rathaloses usually earlier than Rathians.¡± as he finished they reached the end of the corridor and turned right.


    The young miss frowned, ¡°If it can¡¯t use fire, can it even be called a Rathalos?¡±


    Before the hunter could answer, the guard turned and spoke up.


    ¡°This is the observation deck, do you wish to open the window, young miss?¡±


    She clapped her hands and hissed, ¡°Yes!¡± The guard motioned to a servant, and he pulled on a lever. With a clank, the wall in front of them split open slowly, revealing a large courtyard behind the barred window, a red wyvern sleeping in the middle.


    ¡°Oh!¡± the young miss exclaimed, ¡°He¡¯s bigger than I thought! Looks like he¡¯s still sleeping.¡± She turned to the guard, ¡°Wake him up.¡±


    ***


    Ah! I woke up to a loud sound. I blinked a few times before I realised I was free from the vines. I¡¯m free! I broke into a run and flapped my wings excitedly. Then I stopped. Uh? Where am I?


    I looked around to take in my surroundings. I was in a sandy room lit up by the sun, black walls on each side. Wait. One wall had an opening some distance above the ground, barred with black sticks. And it had monsters behind it, looking at me.


    I gasped and reeled back, but I was no longer restrained by vines. I stared at them through the bars. I recognized the one armed furless monster on the left. The one on the right had shiny stuff all over and seemed very excited. I am free now, you don¡¯t scare me. I glared before taking off. Let¡¯s leave this place.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    I rose up with each flap, looking up at the sky while the monsters spoke. But as I rose higher I noticed the sky was barred by black sticks. I reached the ceiling and looked closely at the grid. Each stick was thicker than a big tree branch. Can I break those?


    With a flap, I lifted up my feet and grabbed one. Graah! I screamed as painful shocks coursed through my feet. My mind blanked and I fell down.


    I regained consciousness close to the ground and quickly flapped to slow down my fall, landing with a thud.


    That was close! While I gulped in large breaths of air, the shiny monster shouted ¡°Hahahaha!¡±. I don¡¯t know what that means but I feel like it¡¯s mocking me. Angry, I roared at it. It stopped shouting and looked at me with big eyes.


    Better. Now, how can I break those black bars? I looked up at the sky. Even touching them is dangerous. Maybe with fire? But I don¡¯t know how to use it¡­  The monsters talked again and a clank rang out. I looked back down and below the window the wall split open. An escape?


    But a four legged creature charged inside the room.


    What is this thing? It had two large tusks on the front and thick brown fur all over its body, about half as big as a big grey.


    My stomach couldn¡¯t help but growl at the sight. Finally some good food!


    It looked at me and shouted, its foot scratching the ground. How do I kill it? The neck is too thick to bite and it looks too heavy to lift high up.


    I roared in response and it screamed, charging at me.


    Before it got close I took off, the charger grounding to a halt. I passed over it and gripped its back with my feet. Heavy! It struggled very hard while I lifted it up. I had only risen a little when I had to throw it down.


    It rolled a few times on the ground but was unharmed. That didn¡¯t work too well. The charger screamed at me from the ground. If I fall down from high enough on it, that should deal enough damage. But it¡¯s not an ambush, it won¡¯t stay still. The thing kept screaming but it could never touch me in the air. The monsters were talking but I tuned it out.


    I focused on the charger. Let¡¯s find a strategy¡­ I flew around the screaming charger, examining it. The belly looks softer than the rest. Let¡¯s get it to charge at me, then I¡¯ll rip it open while it recovers.


    I landed some distance away and roared at the charger. It stomped angrily and charged, its speed increasing quickly. Closer¡­ When I could see the red in its eyes I jumped right and flapped. While the charger struggled to stop I stomped on its flank and it fell down on its side.


    Before it could stand up I fell and slashed its stomach with my talons. It screamed and tried to kick me but I jumped away. It¡¯s over. It stood back up but the long gashes on its belly dripped blood, some of the innards poking out.


    It flew into a rage and ran aimlessly, gradually slowing down as it lost blood. It was hobbling weakly on its feet. Too hungry to wait for it to die I struck down, pushing it on the ground. It screamed and struggled, but was too weak to pose any threat. I tore up its belly all the way and took a large bite. Delicious. I relished in the taste while the charger slowly died.


    ***


    ¡°Wow. Did you see that?¡± The young miss turned excitedly, her tiara tingling. ¡°It studied the target and made a strategy to defeat it. It almost looked like a human fighting.¡± The old hunter smiled widely.


    ¡°You are right, young miss. Rathaloses in particular are known for their advanced intelligence among monsters. Except for humans and dragons, there is nothing more intelligent than them.¡±


    The young miss stared silently at the Rathalos eating, her arms crossed.


    After a moment she said, ¡°Interesting. Very interesting. If it is as intelligent as you say, it could have an incredible potential.¡±


    The hunter quickly replied, ¡°Yes young miss, with time and training I¡¯m sure-¡± ¡°But,¡± the young miss cut him, the playfulness gone, ¡° that is only a possibility.¡± She turned and stared at the old man.


    ¡°As I¡¯m sure you know, Rathaloses are not native to Aya. Once the guild learns of it, which they probably already do, they will come knock on my door. If they learn that I own it, they will bother me for weeks, even months. And I can¡¯t exactly turn them away, you know. That is a huge waste of my time, time I don¡¯t have.¡±


    The hunter started sweating. ¡°But young miss, this is a unique opportunity!¡±


    She tilted her head, ¡°I already have strong monsters with good results in the arena. Why should I put myself in a terrible position for a baby?¡±


    The old man wiped his sweat in a hurry, ¡°Young miss, with just a year, no, just a few months, I am sure he will become a serious contender in the arena!¡±


    The woman¡¯s expression sombered. ¡°A year? Months?¡± She glared at the hunter with wide eyes, making him reel back. ¡°Do you think the guild is so easily dealt with? And I¡¯m sure my brothers are begging in their dreams for such an opportunity to mess up my position.¡± Then, a guard came in running, stopping close to the group.


    ¡°Young miss! A representative from the hunter¡¯s guild is asking for an audience.¡± She smirked at the sweating hunter. ¡°See? That¡¯s already two hours of lecture.¡± She turned to the guard. ¡°Escort her to the audience chamber. I will be there shortly.¡± He bowed before leaving hurriedly.


    The old man fell to his knees, ¡°Young miss I¡¯m begging you please buy it! Me and my crew are finished if you don¡¯t.¡±


    Her expression was cold as she stared him in the eyes, ¡°Jonah, let¡¯s be real here. I only came here out of curiosity, not to buy some red baby.¡±


    The hunter froze. ¡°But,¡± she turned to look at the red wyvern, ¡°on account of what I have seen just now, I am willing to give you one chance.¡±


    He almost jumped, ¡°Thank you young miss! Please tell me what you want.¡±


    She smiled, ¡°Simple. He will fight today¡¯s opening capture match. If he wins, I will buy him at whatever price you name. If he loses, I will watch the guild take you away.¡±


    The man¡¯s eyes widened, ¡°T-this¡­¡± She glared at him. ¡°What? Would you prefer me handing you over to the guild right now?¡± The old man fumbled,


    ¡°No! Of course not young miss! But¡­ a match? How could he win?¡±


    The young miss tilted her head, ¡°Oh? So you think he will lose?¡±


    He looked at the red wyvern with a bitter smile, ¡°As much as I believe in his potential, he simply has no hopes of defeating experienced arena hunters without any training.¡± She grinned and laughed softly, ¡°Of course he has no hopes to win. I was just making a fool of you.¡± The old man stared blankly.


    ¡°I am not one to pass up on opportunities when I recognize one. He only needs to fight well enough to satisfy me.¡± She smiled and extended five fingers, ¡°Five minutes. If he can avoid capture for at least five minutes, I will buy him and hide you from the guild.¡±


    The man¡¯s face regained color and he kowtowed, ¡°Oh! Thank you young miss! Your magnanimity is only equal to your beauty! He will fight well and not disappoint you!¡± The young miss chuckled at the flattery, ¡°Good,¡± she turned to a guard in the corner, ¡°Guard, have a handler take care of the Rathalos,¡± she pointed to the hunter, ¡°and take him and his crew to our quarters. Before the first match starts bring him to my lodge.¡± The guard bowed with his right arm on his heart, ¡°It will be done young miss.¡±


    She turned back to the old man, now standing, ¡°I will see you this afternoon Jonah.¡± He bowed deeply, ¡°Thank you, young miss.¡± She smiled and walked away, the guard that had led them in following behind her, while the observation window closed shut with a clank.

 Chapter 8

    Finally, the noisy monsters had left and I could finish my meal in peace. But why were they shouting at each other? Monsters are too weird. While I took large bites of juicy meat, I kept thinking about a way to escape.


    I could never break the black vines, much less those huge black walls. The grid blocking the sky was no good either, just looking at it gave me chills. The only way out is that wall the charger came out of. I¡¯m sure the monsters control it.


    What was on the other side? A pack of chargers? The next time it opens I must go check it out. I won¡¯t stay here, I will escape and go back home.


    Before I realised it, I had eaten all the good parts, only the sturdy head left. Ooh I¡¯m stuffed! I already feel a lot better.


    I looked around the walls, noticing very tiny openings here and there, the faint sounds of monsters walking coming from behind. What are they doing now? And what should I do? With nothing else to do, I walked up to a wall.


    It was mostly black, with some shine and scratch marks here and there. I guess I wasn¡¯t the first one to come here. How sturdy is it? I took a step back, and smashed the wall with a tail swipe. ¡®Dong!¡¯, I flinched a little before smashing it again. ¡®Dong!¡¯, Ouch! I reeled back and looked at the now dull spikes on the left of my tail, then at the little scratches on the wall.


    The walls are really hard. I¡¯m sure even the charger would have died from that! From the sounds, the monsters were a little agitated. I couldn¡¯t help a smile, Hehe, wait until I¡¯m as big as Father, then I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll smash those walls in one hit!


    I came close to the wall, and lifting one foot I scratched at it a few times. Ooh that¡¯s a pretty good scratching material! After just a few scratches, my talons felt comfier. They got too long from not scratching all these days and I didn¡¯t like it. This is my new scratching spot.


    I happily scratched my talons on the wall for a while, then something behind me clanked. I quickly turned to see a small part of a wall protruding out. What is this?


    I took off and landed in front of the thing. Water? A long part of the wall near the ground had been pushed out, hollow and filled with clear water.


    I could use a drink. I smelled for anything weird before lapping it up a few times. Satisfied, I stepped back.


    I blinked a little and yawned. Uh, I ate too much, I need to sleep it off.


    I found a shaded corner and laid down, eyes closed. While I drifted to sleep, a thought kept creeping up.


    What if I can¡¯t escape?


    ***


    I woke up to a series of loud noises, a fair distance away. I blinked a few times sleepily, picking myself up. I did some wing extensions and shook my head before looking around.


    The room was still empty, except for the water thing and the charger carcass. What are those noises? The source was very wide, but they all came from one side of the room, which was the wall that let the charger through.


    Sounds like a lot of monsters talking in one place. I frowned at the thought. That can¡¯t be anything good. The urge to relieve myself broke this chain of thoughts.


    I found another corner and did the deed, the smell reminding me of the wooden, dark room from before. Hopefully this time will be better. All those sounds made me uneasy, masking whatever the monsters in the wall could be doing. I needed to do something.


    So with a few flaps I took off, doing some rounds around the room to exercise. I did not like how limited it felt, but it was far better than being locked in place and doing nothing at all for days.


    As the noises steadily grew in volume, I practiced some maneuvers, imagining Friendly and Spiky chasing me. A few times I almost hit the walls, but it was somewhat fun at least.


    But then a booming monster voice startled me, forcing an emergency landing. Before I even landed the wall clanked open, and as soon as I touched down I turned to look. An empty and dim corridor greeted me, no trace of anything in sight.


    The voice continued talking as I approached the entrance warily. I absolutely wanted to go in and explore, but something was not right. In fact, a few things. What was that loud voice? Why did the wall happen now? Why was nothing waiting for me behind the wall?


    I would not get any answers or escape by staying in that room, so I had to bite the spike and take my chances. I walked, my eyes jumping left and right, searching for any monsters. Clearly this was their doing; they opened the wall for a purpose. Whatever the purpose, it had a high chance of not being any good for me.


    As I walked past the wall into the corridor, the entrance shut close with a clank. I looked back, only to see the dark wall blocking the entrance to my room. A bad feeling grew in my stomach, but I walked forward, a little faster, to the other end of the corridor.


    The loud voice and the monster noises got significantly louder when I entered a smaller room at the end of the corridor. The entrance clanked shut while I looked around. It was a smaller version of my room, the smell of different creatures in the air.


    Before I did anything another wall clanked open, revealing a short corridor. This time, it opened from the floor to the sky. The noises almost doubled in volume, and the bad feeling in my stomach only got worse. The new entrance did not look inviting, at all. I can do this. I have to do this.


    Hesitant, I made my way past the entrance, which closed shut. A bunch of clanks followed and I looked in stupor at the moving wall. I ran to the other end of the corridor and turned back, the wall slowly approaching.


    I scratched and hit the wall blocking the way in despair. It¡¯s going to kill me! Before I lost my mind the moving wall stopped close to me.


    I stared at the now stopped wall until I was sure it would not move again. Why on sky did I enter this horrible place¡­ The resulting space was only enough to take a few steps and turn around. The loud voice said something and the monsters cheered in chorus, assaulting my ears.


    I shifted uneasily, a ball in my stomach. This is not good. I should have known I would regret stepping inside the corridor. Nothing with monsters involved was good, after all. But for some reason I thought it would end well, that I would find a way to escape and go home. What an idiot.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    The cheers calmed down but my heart did not. The loud voice said something again, and the wall opened.


    ¡®Bwoooaaar!¡¯ A huge blowing sound accompanied by cheers blasted me away, my eyes close to popping out. In front of me was a massive area circled by rows after rows of monsters. By the endless sky! There¡¯s thousands of them!


    The moving wall touched my tail and startled me into running inside, the entrance closing shut. All my senses screamed for me to run away, but there was no escape. The grid covered the area in a dome, no entrance in any walls.


    I was scared out of my mind, looking left and right. What is this! Why am I here! I felt something wrong and ducked to the left, a stick flying past me. That¡¯s when I noticed four monsters, inside the area with me.


    How could I have missed them? Each one looked shiny with bits of colorful skin or fur, and held different kinds of ¡®spikes¡¯. What are they doing? Did they attack me?


    It seems I was right because they were running towards me. The loud voice said something again, hurting my ears. Fear, anxiety, frustration and anger all culminated into a roar towards the monsters. You insane monsters! If you want a fight I will give you one!


    I focused on the four monsters and ignored the loud cheers. I took off and flew up some distance, examining them. Two ran in front, one a lot bigger than the other. The bigger one held a large ¡®plank¡¯ and a long spike, the other one a small ¡®plank¡¯ and a short spike. The two in the back looked the smallest, one held a spike with two hands, the other some kind of recurved bar.


    Before I could examine further, I dodged another stick, which I was sure the last monster threw at me. Annoying! I ignored all the others and dove straight for that one. In mere moments I was on top of it, but I saw it pick a bunch of sticks and draw them on the bar. It¡¯s going to shoot me when I reach it. Just as I predicted it shot me with 5 sticks, but I extended my wings and blasted them and the monster with wind. The monster fell down, and I was about to grab it when a shock pushed my head to the right.


    Ouch! I looked left to see a monster with a spike in both hands. A flash came from the end of the spike and something hit my chest painfully. You!


    Angered, I tried to stomp it but it rolled away. I was about to bite it when I felt something and jumped away. ¡®Hiyah!¡¯ The monster with the small plank and spike slashed the air where my head was at a moment before.


    Right behind it the monster with a big plank and long spike came running, the last two picking themselves up, the group facing me. My anger deflated a little.


    Oh sky please give me strength.


    ***


    ¡°Look, he dodged the slash!¡± The young miss chirped, her hands clapping with the audience. ¡°What do you think Zach?¡± She said, turning to her guard, the same one that had led her to the observation deck this morning.


    ¡°His reflexes are remarkable, even in this environment it can feel the air currents and dodge attacks other monsters couldn¡¯t. I had heard Raths were incredible fighters, but seeing is believing.¡± He said, looking down at the fight.


    The young miss hummed thoughtfully, glancing at a small hourglass slowly filling up, then at the anxious bald hunter on her right. ¡°Do you think he has a chance?¡± She asked Zach. Cupping his chin he replied, ¡°I¡¯m not sure. The Blue Pearl hunters have never fought a Rathalos but they have experience fighting flying wyverns, while the Rathalos is too young to breath fire and has never fought humans. He might hold out by flying around, but the hunters would never give him the chance.¡± As he finished the Rathalos was taking off.


    ¡°Ah! Let¡¯s see if you¡¯re right.¡± The miss exclaimed.


    Before the Rathalos could get away, the archer shot his left arm and the gunner his right arm, messing his balance. He fell down with a thud, the lancer stabbing his side while the sword and shield bashed its head.


    ¡°Ooh, that must have hurt!¡± The young miss exclaimed. The Rathalos groaned in pain before wildly swiping its tail, pushing the lancer two steps back while the sword and shield rolled below the tail and placed something on the ground. ¡°And a shock trap was placed! Will the Rathalos be captured?¡± The announcer loudly proclaimed, the crowd cheering.


    ¡°Looks like you were right.¡± The miss said flatly, the old hunter sweating profusely.


    ***


    Those damned monsters! Everytime I thought I could bite a head or a leg off, one of the others disturbed me in some way, missing the opportunity while I got hit. The long spike especially hurt, my side bleeding.


    I had just swiped my tail to bash them away when I felt something drop next to my feet. Danger. I tried to jump away but a ranged monster shot my feet, slightly delaying me. ¡®Grarg!¡¯ Familiar and painful shocks coursed my body, but I had already started jumping and fell down a few steps to the side. The pain reduced dramatically and I scrambled to stand up.


    I felt something dropping down on my head from the left. I raised my wing and blocked a slash with the spikes, pushing back the slasher as I stood up. My boiling anger exploded in a roar, briefly stunning the monsters.


    I will kill you all! The loud voice and cheers only enraged me further.


    From the right. I shifted left with a step, the long spike only brushing against my scales. A flash came from my left and I flapped down with my wing, a small dirt mound erupting close to my feet. The spiker hid behind the large plank, retracting its spike. Too slow!


    I jumped with a flap and stomped on the plank, pushing the spiker down and immediately bit on its neck. It screamed as I bit hard, but it felt like biting a wall. I swatted some sticks on the left, but had to let go and jump away to avoid a slash to my feet.


    This monster has a tough hide! I glanced at the spiker and saw a large bite mark but otherwise no blood. The monsters were focused on it so I used the opportunity to fly off.


    The ranged monsters shot me again, but this time I was ready and did not fall down when my arms were hit, although it hurt. I watched from afar as the monsters grouped and faced me while I flew around them, the one with the sticks shooting me.


    Just looking at them made me angry. I can¡¯t attack randomly, I need a plan. Which one is the weakest? They were all weak, but together they were strong, somehow. I couldn¡¯t finish one before the others interrupted. What can I do then? I looked at the tightly packed group and a thought flashed in my head, a smile creeping on my face. I¡¯ll just finish them all at once!


    ***


    The young miss watched with wide eyes. ¡°Wow. Jorah, your Rathalos really is full of surprises! The thing escaped a shock trap and pinned down a hunter in a few seconds! Zach, what do you think?¡± She turned to her guard with stars in her eyes. ¡°I think we seriously underestimated the Rathalos,¡± Zach said with a serious face, ¡°He is learning incredibly fast. He already understands how each hunter fights and is now learning to counter them. It is a sight to see.¡± The old hunter relaxed his grip on the chair, wiping his sweat with an air of confidence. The young miss smiled, ignoring the announcer. ¡°Let¡¯s see what he can do.¡± She took a sip of her drink, glancing at the hourglass, now half-filled. Just as she looked back to the arena the Rathalos stopped circling the group and went for a dive. She frowned, ¡°Hasn¡¯t he tried this and failed before? I thought he was smart.¡± Her frown deepened when she noticed something weird. ¡°He¡¯s aiming for¡­ the front?¡±


    The gunner and the archer shot him but he either dodged or let the shot hit the scales harmlessly. As the Rathalos got closer they all prepared their strongest attack. They were ready for the wind slap.


    The Rathalos would fail to stun them, then get terribly hit and captured with the second shock trap. Most spectators and the hunters all had this thought in mind, when the Rathalos did the unexpected. It didn¡¯t do a wind slap.


    Instead he adjusted his aim a little higher, to behind the group. Everyone watched, stunned, as the Rathalos landed right behind the gunner and the archer, scratching deep gashes in the ground as he swiped his tail. Completely caught off guard they both went flying to the sides, unknown whether they were dead or alive.


    The last two reacted immediately, the lancer charging while the sword and shield took out a horn and blew it, running with the lancer. The impact must have been strong, because the Rathalos took a second to recover before jumping out of the way. From all sides of the arena guards flooded in, rushing to stop the Rathalos.


    ¡°Blue Pearl has surrendered! Mystic Rose wins!¡± The announcer yelled excitedly to the resounding cheers of the crowd, and only then did the young miss react. Calmly, she stood up and turned to the stunned bald man, ¡°Jonah, how much do you want?¡±