Morning slowly arise upon the forest. The few birds that still remain were singing their twilight song, and both the Toa and the denizens of the shack peacefully slept. Save for David, who sneaked out of the shack once the two girls were sound asleep his , sleeping bag in hand. However, what tranquil dreams Sora was having ended when Taylor rolled over, her hand slapping Sora's forehead. Sora reflexively shot up, looking around for any sign of danger. When she saw none, she slowly descend back into the sleeping bag. She rubbed her tired eyes with her hands, slowly trying to piece together the details of the night before.
The last thing she remembered was reworking the Pre Cal problems, Taylor laughing at their attempts along the way. She also remember crumbling up the papers when Taylor said that it would give her a B, and then Taylor refusing to sleep on the sleeping bag she brought, insisting on taking Sora's bed. Not that Sora was in any position to disagree, firmly remembering the large amount of crumbs now on it. Besides, the sleeping bag Taylor brought was comfortable enough, allowing her to fall asleep as soon as she slip in between the folds. She reached beside her for her phone to see the time.
Its not even 7 yet... probably wouldn't kill anyone to try to get another hour of sleep. She thought. She rolled over gratefully, already feeling sleep once again tugging on her eyelids. However, another slap from Taylor shattered that greedy idea. A growl escape Sora's throat as she shot up once again. She turned her head, glaring at Taylor who just rolled over oblivious.
"Stupid alarm… it's Saturday." Taylor grumbled in her sleep. Sora sighed. She rubbed the sleep from her tired eyes, before unwillingly wiggled out of the sleeping bag. Whispering to herself, "I need to check the Toa anyway." She pause, glance at the pot in the supplies she keeps here. she grabbed it without a second thought before heading out of the door.
She's greeted with the dark purples of twilight, the light of the sun have yet to come to chase away the lingering mist that clings to the ground, leaving the forest freezing if one is not use to it. Sora took in a breath of the crisp air, taking her chance to enjoy the feeling of it as it left her lungs. The calm before what could happen sometime during the day.
Gently she closed the door behind her, noting everything in the clearing was left unchanged since when she left it last night. Sora pause , finding the statement odd. The fire was just as tall as it was when she started it, when it should be cold coals by now. A soft snore rose from the direction of the shack behind her. She briefly count the number of bodies around the fire, before turning her head toward where she came, alert. However she let out a sigh of relief once she sees who was making the sound. David, snuggled beneath his sleeping bag, Quietly sleeps upright against the side of the building. His face relax, his dirty blond hair slightly clinging to the wood behind him.
David must have kept the fire going. She reasoned. She shakes her head in her foolish reaction. And proceed to walk toward the edge of the clearing. Her mind wander as she glide through the forest she now knows by heart. She found her thoughts drift toward the Toa, despite her attempt to do otherwise. Even as she filled the pot at the nearby stream and made the return trip, all she could think about is about the promise Taylor tried to force upon her. These Toa could be the exact opposite of the heroes her brother worshiped. If this is the case, it means she would have to try to keep them off her friends long enough for them to make it to the Van. Sora furrowed her brow, wondering if she could even accomplish such a feat as she re emerged from the forest.
"Maybe I should worry about that when the time come." She sighed, placing the pot as close to the lapping flames as she could.
She looked at the still sleeping Toa, and found her eyes drawn to the journals placed beside them. Curious, she grabbed the nearest one, and skimmed over what was written. Despite herself, she found a small chuckle escaped her lips as she count the amount of misspellings.
"you give yourself too little credit David." She smiled, reviewing everything written down till the end, where there was a small, mangled up word was scribbled in the margins. She stared at it, trying to understand what it actually means. Dehydrated, really? She thought.
"You're up early." Sora nearly dropped the journal into the fire as David yawned behind her. She looked at him, just as he crouched down beside her.
"Princess Taylor decided that I slept in long enough." She snorted. Placing the journal back where she found it. David watch her, and then saw the pot full of water.
" Is that for them?" He asked.
"For us, you deplete the last of the water I had stored." Sora respond, she turn to him, "what make your so sure that they can get dehydrated anyway?" she ask. David just shrugged, he suppress another yawn, before responding.
"They kept trying to drink from an empty bottle" He reasoned. Sora Grunted, she turn around and approached the red Toa." Anything else happened last night." She asked. David pointed to three of them. while she check on the injuries.
"They … talked in their sleep a couple of times. I couldn't understand what they said though." He said frowning.
Sora furrowed her brow at hearing the news. She worried about the problems a language barrier could produce, but didn't say it out loud. She instead lightly touched the slightly blue goth around his damaged arm, it jerked slightly, but the Toa otherwise remained asleep.
" He's going to need a change." She sighed, rubbing her forehead. She started back to the shack, turning back toward David before going back in. "Want some breakfast?" she offered. David eyes suddenly became alert. He nod his head quickly. Sora smiled if only briefly, and open the door.
"they might be hungry too when they wake up." David called faintly before walking through.
Sora quietly navigate the small shack, using her phone for extra light. She picked up a roll of goths from the First aid kit. Then turn her attention to the food store.
"What do Toa even eat anyway." She muttered. Quickly she dig through the pile of cans, grabbing the two cans chili as she sees them. When she looked up, she found herself eying the large bag of apples she brought up a few days before, and grab that as well. By the time Sora managed to get everything to the point that her main arm was still free, sun beams were streaming through the open door. Open enough for her to see David's shadow running toward it. He screeched to a stop in the doorway, panting
"Sora, one of the Toa is awake." Her eyes went wide. She nearly dropped everything in her arms as she grabbed her staff. She hurried through the door, nearly pushing David out of the way in her rush,Just in time to see the blue Toa sitting themselves up. Her pulse started to race, watching the Toa began to turn their head around, getting a bearing of what's around them. Luckily The Toa haven't turned to their direction , yet.
Slowly, she handed the food to David, And said in a hushed whisper. " David, go inside." David blinked, then shook his head, not budging. Sora was about to force him in, when a cry of despair, a sound that was too light and musical to belong to a male, rang from the Toa when they saw the Toa of fire. The two humans watched as she did a near crawl toward him. A hand hovered over the nearest bandaged limb, her body shaking heavily.
"Jaller?" The Toa uttered this, gently shaking his shoulder. When he didn't respond,. The Toa Shook him a bit more, Speaking in a language that neither Sora or David could understand beyond the Toa of fire's name. Still neither one of them moved to stop her, until she started to rip the bandages off with ease.
"Dam it, she's going to make it worse." Sora cursed, she garbed the cup with the goths inside,then moved toward the Toa, yelling for her to stop. The Toa didn't listen, or couldn't understand what Sora was telling her to do. But instead of moving her head toward the approaching human, she moved her hands near the center of her chest. The center of her mask furrowed a bit in concentration, while Sora just stood behind her wondering what The Toa was planing to do.
To Sora's amazement, a small bubble of water formed in between her hands. The Toa moved the bubble down, letting go right above Jaller's body. She watches it with as it envelops him, giving a slight sliver sheen as the surface ripples slightly. Yet as quickly as the Jaller was submerge by the liquid, it was absorbed into ground. The strange bubble didn't even leaving the blanket damp apart from the morning dew, as if it was never there to begin with.
Sora found herself hard press to believe what just happened, yet she wasn't given enough time to. The Toa of Water began to wave, her eyes rolled to the back of her head. Sora rushed forward,and managing to catch to her just as the Toa fell backward. Sora gently eased her back on the ground, then examined Jaller once again, removing the shredded remains of the goths. She found herself doing a double take, not believing her eyes. What breaks that were in the armor was now sealed, shining as if it was just polished. When she touched it, she felt only the armor, not the muscle tissue she wrapped just last night. She looked up to David, who is now smiling ,an apple in his hand.
"Water heals." He chimed merrily, taking a bite out of the apple.
"Maybe... but it's not the only thing it can do" Sora shook her head, unable to say anything more. She stood once again, The cup in hand and looked toward the boiling pot. She place it on top of the pile in David's arms, removed the pot from the fire, and grabbed the Journal by Jaller's feet . She reached into her jacket pocket, finding a small pencil within the seams, and began to jot down the changes into it. Determine to be some what productive while she waited for the water to be cool enough for them to drink.
"Is the water ready?" Sora heard David ask. She snap the last journal shut, her eyes close.
"I just took it off the fire remember?" She sighed. Out of the corner of her eye she watched David inched his hand toward the top. She felt her hand flinched, about to grab his hand when he hummed,
"Seemed cool enough for me." he offered her the second cup, and press her finger near the surface. instead of scalding like it should, it was lukewarm.
"This day is just going to get stranger isn't it?"
David nodded . He moved toward Jaller with his cup in hand, when Sora got up. She walk toward The Toa of Water , lifting her body slightly. She eases the water to the only indicator of lips that she could find, and press the cup to them. The Toa nearly spat the little that she manage to trickle in as if it was poison. Sora sighed and tried again, this time the Toa accepted it, and once her body recognized what it was, gulped it down greedily. Sora shook her head, and place the emptied cup beside her. She then grabbed the hilt of the weapon on the Toa's back, and removed it quickly, grunting from the effort.
"What are you doing?" David asked, looking up from the Toa of Air.
"Declawing them, something that I should have done from the beginning." She grunted, swiftly moving to the next Toa, repeating the process.
" You know that it won't do any good."
" Still it would make me feel better." She hold the cup, looking down on the Silver and green Toa's body, and frown. The entire face was covered by his mask,.Where she assume the mouth would be was covered with something similar to Jagged teeth in appearance. She look up toward David, who was approaching with his own cup.
"Should we take off the mask?" she asked, unsure what the consequence would be.
David didn't say anything,.instead he kneel beside the Toa, and lifted the Toa's wrist. Making sure that its face up,he then slowly poured the water onto it. To Sora's surprised the water seemingly disappear as soon as it hits it.
"How in the blazes..." Sora stated. David smiled, and poured another cup of water in the the same fashion.
" I spilled some water last night and found this out." Sora shook her head, her fingers massaging her forehead.
"I swear... if one of them starts flying ..." She groans,. David shook his head, flicking his gaze toward the black Toa, before getting up. He grabbed the ax that is now next to the Toa of stone, and carry it toward the wheel barrow.
Sora watched him out of the corner of her as he walked out of the clearing. She picks up the remaining weapons, quietly wonder what her friend plans to do as she caries each of the weapon behind the shack, hiding them under the pile of timber she keep there.
"There, out of sight." she sighed. She returned to the fire, and look to each of the Toa, still asleep, the rising sun making their limbs gleam. She suddenly found herself desperate to find something else she could do, something to distract herself with until the rest of them awake. However, She found that there wasn't anything she could do. That is, until her eyes lay upon her discarded bo staff.