Chapter IV: The Storm

Randall's eyes flashed with excitement when he noticed the small, speckled bird nestled inside a nest. A bird was by no means an easy catch, but with the aid of his blending ability, he was certain he could sneak up on the winged creature and grab it. He had been feasting on nothing but bugs and worms for the last six days, and he was yearning for something different. A bird seemed like a nice upgrade, but it was still small enough. With his water rations being as small as they were, he knew big game was out of the question, as it took more water to digest a bigger kill, and this would only lead to dehydration, thus crippling him. The water he had gathered from the swamp didn't last him long. He had resorted to using the tattered shirt to soak up morning dew that collected on the leaves and grass, which he wrung out into the turtle shell to drink. It never amounted to much, but it had been better than nothing. He had finally caught a break when there came a brief, heavy shower. Randall had seized the opportunity and sat the turtle shell out to collect the rainwater. The shower had lasted for all of about ten minutes, but he had managed to collect about half a bottle's worth of water inside the shell. He was good for another day or two.

The bird suddenly took flight, and Randall's face fell slightly but only for a moment, as he suddenly realized what treasures the nest most-likely held. He made his way over to the tree and climbed up the thick trunk with ease, coming within inches of the nest. He stretched his neck out and glanced down into the nest, finding it to contain three small eggs. He eagerly shot out a hand and scooped them up, cradling them against his chest as he slowly made his way back down to the ground. One by one, he carefully cracked the eggs open and held them over his mouth, allowing the thick, yellowy goop to slide down his throat. Within seconds, the eggs were nothing more than broken shells on the ground.

The mother bird returned moments later, having no doubt left to find food for herself. Randall watched as the little brown bird hopped about on the nest, clearly confused over the disappearance of her eggs. She would leave the nest and come back, as though expecting the eggs would finally reappear every time she returned. Though he knew it was silly, Randall couldn't help the guilt he felt as he continued to watch the bird stress over the situation. He knew such feelings had to be vanquished, as there was no sense in having them in this type of situation, where staying alive was all that mattered. He did what he had to do to survive.

Randall retrieved his backpack and slung it over his shoulder. He took a moment to take a quick sip of water, taking note of the fact that the bottle was almost empty again. If it weren't for the fact that he had to keep moving, he would have made it a top priority to find a primary water source that would sustain him. Had he been lost in his own world, he wouldn't have to waste nearly as much energy traversing through the woods in search of a way out. He could just signal for help and wait to be rescued, something that would surely get him killed in this world. Being discovered would mean his death, not his salvation, and he had to keep moving if he was ever going to find a way out. But he exercised caution when traveling, well-aware of his limitations. He stopped every thirty minutes or so to rest, always remaining in the shade.

As he made these periodic stops, he noticed various sets of animal tracks, all of them going in the same direction, and some of them even merging together. Randall didn't see the significance of this at first, but when he continued to come across these tracks, curiosity eventually got the better of him, and he soon found himself following a set of freshly-made deer tracks. The sight that eventually met him nearly made his knees buckle. He dropped his bag and rushed forward, oblivious to the possible dangers that might have been lurking just beneath the surface, and dove into the river, easing his way out into the deepest section. There he bathed himself, splashing his face and arms with the cool, refreshing water. It certainly couldn't compare to standing under the steam of a shower with a bar of soap in hand, but he wasn't complaining. He felt like a new monster as nearly a week's worth of dirt and grime was washed away from his purple and blue scales.

Once he was satisfied, Randall made his way back to dry land, sighing contently as he emerged from the water. What gave this water source its significance was the fact that it moved, albeit slowly. Moving water meant oxygen. Oxygen meant fish. Even better than the fact that this river provided him with food and water was the fact that if he followed its route, he would likely come across a community of humans living along its banks, as it was quite common for humans to live within close proximity to a lake or river. Things couldn't have looked better for him. This meant he could keep traveling without having to worry about where he'd find his next water source. A new sense of hope and calm suddenly enveloped him, and he was able to truly relax for the first time since he had been unwillingly thrust into this strange, unwelcoming world.

Of course his relief was only momentary, as he was noticing that the wind was increasing in strength. It had been windy all morning, and also the previous night, but now it was becoming rather bothersome. Sometimes he would be hit with a gust so powerful that he would stumble slightly. Randall immediately suspected that bad weather was heading his way, a possibility that was further indicated by the stressful behavior of the birds. Violent weather was the very last thing he needed to deal with, but he had been expecting it from day one. Rather than try to continue his travels, he decided it'd be best to set up camp and prepare for any possible nasty weather, despite it still being fairly early in the day. The monster had mostly taken to ready-made shelters, like hollowed out logs or trees, but now he figured it was time he made an attempt to construct his own shelter. He had more than enough material to make such a construction, but he didn't know where to begin. Don't be stupid. If you could construct a major piece of machinery designed to extract the screams of children, I think you can throw together a lousy shelter.

Randall surveyed the forest in hopes of getting some sort of idea. His first discovery of interest was a large, fallen tree branch, which proved to be quite heavy when he attempted to pick it up. Getting a good grip on the branch, he swung it against the trunk of a tree, pleased to see that it did not snap. He then looked to the surrounding trees, showing interest only in two trees that stood parallel to each other. When he found two decent size trees with thick trunks, he attempted to wedge the branch between them about six feet off the ground. Once the branch was in place, he tugged on it slightly to make sure it was secure. He knew a lean-to shelter wasn't the best choice, but anything beyond that would just take too much time and energy. He would only be packing up and leaving the next morning anyway, and so there was no sense in going to that kind of trouble.

The lizard next began gathering as many branches of a relatively smaller size that he could find to lay against the main supporting branch. He placed them as closely together as he could, not wanting to leave too many gaps for rain to leak through. Once that step was complete, he then started breaking off low hanging branches with a vast collection of large leaves and draped them over the bare branches. He also tore off large chunks of bark from trees and placed it over his shelter as shingling, though he knew they probably wouldn't stand up to any intense winds. With this in mind, he fished the bundle of nylon cord out of his backpack and cut himself two long pieces to criss-cross over the shelter, hoping they would help in holding it together against the wind.

Once he was satisfied with his work, Randall moved to retrieve his backpack once again and searched its contents for the spool of fishing line. Fishing was nothing new to him, as he recalled a few childhood memories of going fishing with his father and sister. But that had been over a decade ago, and the experience was hardly a help to him now. Not to mention the fact he was lacking a fishing rod, which certainly made the process a lot easier. Simply fishing with a hook and line didn't exactly inspire confidence, but he wasn't about to be deterred. He had been feasting on practically nothing but bugs for days, and he was ready for a change of taste. He unraveled the fishing line until he had a decent length, and then began the tedious process of tying a hook, a challenge that made the prospect of catching a fish seem like a cakewalk.

After searching under a few rocks, he was able to find a small earthworm to use as bait. He then made his way to the edge of the water, where he saw a few tiny fish scatter upon seeing him. He allowed himself to blend as he eased into the water, hoping he could get within close proximity to the fish, thus making it easier to catch them. Once the water made it past his first set of arms he stopped and remained completely motionless. His feet had stirred up a good deal of sediment, which made it difficult to see. It took several minutes for it to finally settle again, but when it did, the lizard was able to vaguely make out a few small fish swimming near his feet. He kept the baited hook suspended above the water, not wanting to waste a good worm on something that would serve as little more than a snack. For a full twenty minutes, he remained as still as a statue, eyes shifting from left to right as he waited for his perfect target. The surface of the ordinarily calm bayou closely resembled crinkled tin foil as the winds carried on, showing no signs of dying. Randall would only tear his attention away from the water to monitor the sky, which was gradually becoming darker and more overcast.

Finally, after a great deal of patience, Randall noticed a sizable fish slowly inching its way towards him. He wasted no time in letting the hook drop into the water, the worm still twitching slightly. It didn't take long for the lingering bass to take notice of the bait, which it immediately investigated. The fish expanded its large mouth and practically inhaled the worm. It snagged the bait right off the hook before Randall could even react, leaving the hook completely bare and the bass quite satisfied. Randall heaved a sigh, though he wasn't surprised. He really hadn't expected to catch anything on the first try, but he was still disappointed.

Randall lifted his gaze as he prepared to make his way back to the bank and froze immediately, as he found himself gazing into the slitted eye of an alligator. His lips parted in a silent gasp as he gazed at the prehistoric creature, feeling unimaginably foolish for having let himself forget that such creatures were native to this part of the world. To think he had dove into this river without a single thought and splashed around like an idiot. Randall maintained his invisibility, though he was trembling severely. The reptile was so close he could almost reach out and touch it, but he didn't think it was even the slightest bit aware of his presence. The lizard held his breath and slowly began backing out of the water as the predator eased along. Once he made it back to dry land, he rested a trembling hand against a tree and took a few deep, shuddering breaths. Once he was calm again, he set to work at finding fresh bait, knowing now to be just a bit more cautious when he went into the water.

ooooooo

It took him close to an hour, but his patience finally paid off, and he managed to hook a large-mouth bass, which proved to be surprisingly strong for its small size. Tightly clutching the spool, Randall walked his way back to the bank, dragging the flopping fish onto dry land. He made his way back to camp, immediately retrieving his knife. Keeping the fish still, he brought the knife down just below the gills and swiftly sliced its head clean off, cringing slightly when he saw its mouth continued to open and close. As he gazed at the still gasping fish head, he recalled one of his fishing trips with his father and sister at the tender age of just seven years old. He remembered being horrified to the point of tears by the thought of his father taking the fish he had caught and actually cooking them to eat. It had been straight back to the lake with those fish, much to his father's displeasure. The irony of the situation almost made him laugh.

Randall carefully began cutting the scales away from the decapitated fish, revealing the pinkish flesh underneath, which oozed blood. Once the fish was clean of scales, he began cutting it into slabs, and then those slabs into chunks. Taking what remained of his water, he washed away all the dirt, and then placed the moist chunks into the turtle shell. The lizard then began gathering twigs and dry leaves to prepare his fire, adding the kindling he had collected in his Ziploc bag the day before to ensure it would ignite swiftly. He tried to build the fire close to the shelter, as it provided a shield against the wind. He had to cup his hand over the lighter in order to protect the flame against any heavy gusts of wind. Finding a small stick, he skewered the chunks of flesh and held them over the small flame to cook them. After just taking one bite, he quickly dismissed proper eating etiquette and began devouring the fish like a wild animal. The fish certainly had a better flavor than the bugs he had become accustomed to eating, and it satisfied his hunger as well.

Not long after finishing his meal, the lizard began to feel fatigue. After first extinguishing what remained of the fire and storing away his supplies, he immediately took refuge under his shelter, lying down on his stomach to rest. The wind produced quite a bit of noise, but it seemed to be blowing from behind the shelter, therefore Randall was protected from the brunt of it, though he noted with mild disdain that raindrops were beginning to patter against the ground. He pushed himself as far into the shelter as was possible and shut his eyes, feeling certain that, despite the bad turn in weather, he would be able to sleep.

ooooooo

Miles away, along the nearly deserted coastline, the warning flags flapped madly against the roaring winds, their cloth a bright, angry red that stood out in stark contrast against the darkened skies. Hour by hour, the massive storm crept across the Atlantic to the awaiting shores of the Gulf. Many of the coast's inhabitants had already evacuated, while others hunkered down and prepared to ride it out. And then there were those who didn't have the slightest inkling as to what was coming.

ooooooo

The monster awoke with a loud gasp as he suddenly felt the assault of heavy rain against his scales. Looking around frantically, he noticed that almost all of his shelter had been blown away by the powerful winds. Randall desperately latched onto his bag and sprang to his feet, though he was almost instantly knocked back down by a heavy gust of wind. His already poor visibility was reduced to almost nothing as the rain stung his eyes like dozens of pin pricks. He stumbled about and held onto the trunks of trees for support as the powerful winds showed him no mercy. In addition to the painful sting of the rain, he was constantly being bombarded by flying debris, most of which consisted of large tree branches. He draped an arm over his head to shield himself the best he could as the intense winds continued to painfully assault him with broken tree branches.

With little more than just a powerful will to live as his strength, he pushed through the rain and wind in hopes of finding a sturdier shelter, anything that could at least partially shield him from nature's onslaught. Rather than try to walk upright like he normally would, he kept to creeping across the ground on all four sets of legs, which gave him more stability. There wasn't much light to guide him, and everything was already lost in the blur of heavy rain. The only things Randall could possibly make out were blurry shapes. He grit his teeth in frustration and let out a loud snarl, which easily dissolved in the roaring winds.

The lizard came upon a cluster of bald cypress trees, each one being quite large in its own right, but one in particular was very unique in appearance, as its base was far more swollen than its neighboring cypresses, and its roots were heavily exposed and hosting quite a few cypress knees, which extended several feet into the air. There were large openings in the roots, wide enough for the monster to squeeze inside and take refuge, even if it was a tight fit. He ducked inside the roots and held on tightly to the tree's interior. He was relieved somewhat from the wind but the rain still beat against his face painfully. V - Vanquish fear. Gritting his teeth against the pain, he glared into the storm. "Is that all you've got?!" he screamed into the wind, not sure whether he was screaming at some sort of cosmic entity, or just nature itself. "I'm not going down that easily, do you hear me?! I've been knocked down all my life, and I've ALWAYS GOTTEN BACK UUUP!"

Randall winced and pulled back slightly, turning his face away from the harsh spray of rain. His hands gripped the roots tighter and he squeezed his eyes shut, hopeful that the storm would pass relatively quickly, but after nearly an hour, the storm only seemed to be getting stronger, and Randall noted with horror that water was gathering around his feet. As the storm became progressively stronger, the water continued to rise, reaching the lizard's ankles, and then almost to his knees. It wasn't the water itself that frightened him, but rather what may be hiding within it. Though the idea of leaving the cover of the tree roots wasn't appealing, he didn't want to risk another encounter with an alligator if the flood waters continued to rise.

Stepping out into the open, Randall fumbled his way atop the large base of the cypress tree, using the tree's knees to stabilize himself as the wind threatened to knock him back off into the water. He then took the backpack and looped the large straps over one of the knees before then slipping himself through the straps, clutching both the bag and the cypress knee as tightly as he could and hoping it would be enough to keep him anchored. He occasionally peered over the side to take note of the height of the water. It was still rising considerably, and Randall feared that it would eventually submerge the tree's base and sweep him away. But all he could do at that point was try to wait it out, no matter how long that took.

ooooooo

Several miles away, two anxious tigers were not faring much better.

The two animals had been pacing the enclosure up until the storm finally made landfall, and now they were forced to ride out the storm while taking refuge in the den box situated at the back of the cage. The two felines turned their heads at every sound, their ears rotating forwards, backwards and even sideways as the wind howled and knocked large pieces of debris against their enclosure. It was a maddening experience, and it showed no signs of letting up. Dorito seemed to be the most anxious of the two, whereas Sonny was lying very still with his head resting on his paws, though his agitation was still evident. Dorito jumped and growled at every sound, occasionally rising to his feet as though he was going to flee the safety of the den box. It was only when a large, metal trash can was knocked against the back of the enclosure that the feline finally bolted out into the open. It wasn't a pleasant experience, as he was immediately pelted with heavy rain, which stung his eyes and limited his visibility. However, there was no getting back to his sanctuary, for at that very moment, the incredible gale force winds and the saturated earth proved to be too much for the eldest and largest tree that loomed just thirty feet behind the enclosure. Its bark cracked loudly as it tilted forward, crashing down upon the enclosure. The fencing was quite deteriorated in some places, including the top section, thus the weight of the tree caused the fencing to actually break at those weak points.

Dorito had managed to avoid being flattened by the tree trunk, though he still found himself somewhat cornered by large pieces of the structure. Worming his way out from underneath the wire fencing, the tiger immediately sensed the distress of his companion, who had still been residing in the den box when the tree had collapsed upon it. Dorito edged towards what was left of the den, though he could not access it, as a large piece of wire fencing was strewn over it, pinned by the weight of the tree. Unable to do much else, Dorito came as close to the den box as was possible and lowered himself to the ground, picking up the scent of blood as he tried to smell for the scent of the other cat. The feline groaned slightly in an attempt to communicate with the other, but there was no response that he could hear amongst the various loud noises going on all around him. His nostrils flared and he huffed in distress, eager to make physical contact with the other feline. He remained like that for hours, no longer concerned about the raging storm going on around him. He continued to listen for any signs of life from the other cat, but all was quiet within the den box.

After several agonizing hours, the winds calmed suddenly, and the rain ceased. Dorito lifted his head, sniffed the air, and then rose to his feet, his fur still dripping after being doused by the spray of rain. He gazed solemnly at the den box, knowing now that his companion was no longer living. He stood there for quite some time, unsure of his next move. But realizing there was nothing here for him anymore, he managed to push past pieces of the broken structure and hoisted himself up onto the fallen tree before then leaping to the soggy ground on the other side of the enclosure. There he stood with even more uncertainty, as he had never known anything outside of that enclosure for most of his three and a half years of life. His instinct to stay close to the enclosure was difficult to shake, but his instinct to survive proved stronger, and the feline disappeared into the forest.

ooooooo

It was the strangest thing. It was almost as if someone had flipped a switch. Without warning, the rain suddenly ceased, and the powerful winds died as well, blowing at a gentle speed of about fifteen miles per hour, a mere breeze compared to what Randall had endured just moments ago. The exhausted monster slowly lifted his head and peered with tired eyes into the dark. The noises that surrounded him were his only indication as to what was going on. He unzipped the backpack and searched around until his fingers brushed against the cool, smooth surface of the flashlight. He peered over the side of the tree's base and shined the yellowish light into the flood waters, his eyes widening slightly when he noticed that they were no more than a foot below him. He continued to shine the light in different spots, sometimes finding dead rodents drifting along in the murky water, along with various pieces of debris. He put the flashlight away and laid his head atop the bag, knowing he'd have to wait until it was light again before he could move on, though if the flood waters had not receded by then, he'd probably be in for a longer wait.

However, in spite of the fact that the storm seemed to be dying, Randall wasn't entirely sure. Something just didn't feel right to him. It was calm, yes, but it was almost too calm, and the change in weather had come so suddenly. Randall craned his neck and tried to have a look through the canopy of the forest. He could vaguely make out low hanging clouds, and he was certain he could see stars in a few places. He dismissed his feelings of discomfort as he tried to rest his tired, battered body, but within about an hour's time, the moment of calm had passed, and the winds regained their strength, accompanied by a painful assault of heavy rain. Only this time it felt like the winds were blowing in the opposite direction. It was then that Randall finally realized what he had been up against all this time, and his panic swelled. This wasn't a mere storm, it was a hurricane. It was a force he was completely unfamiliar with, as he had lived too far inland to have been impacted by the hurricanes in his own world. He was able to recall memories of sitting at home, watching the weather channel and pointing at laughing at the weathermonsters as they were knocked off their feet and into a bush while reporting in the middle of a powerful coastal storm. He now had a newfound respect for those monsters.

Randall kept his eyes closed tightly as he clung to his anchor. Certainly if he could get through this, he could get through anything. With the eye of the storm having already passed over him, he knew the storm was halfway over. But as the minutes passed, Randall could feel water splashing against his tail, which he had draped over the base of the tree to alert him if the flood waters were getting too high, and it seemed that now they were. Feeling the water beginning to lap against his limbs, Randall put every last one of his hands and feet to use. With his upper sets of arms, he clung to the backpack and the cypress knees, and with his two lower sets of limbs, he clung to any and every part of the tree that was graspable. And with that, he held on for dear life.

ooooooo

Gray clouds still loomed overhead when daybreak finally came, revealing the devastation in greater detail. Leaves, tree limbs, and even entire trees were strewn about in the grayish brown water. The wind was still blowing quite strongly, but it wasn't anything like what Randall had endured during the night hours. The lizard slowly lifted his head and gazed with exhausted, bleary eyes at his surroundings. He trembled slightly, his body still in shock from the trauma it had endured for hours on end. All across his body were cuts of various sizes, all of them received from the flying debris. Part of his battered body was submerged in the muddy flood waters, but he still had just enough strength to keep his head up. Waiting for the murky water to recede was rather grueling, but the monster didn't have the strength to do much else, and he certainly wasn't about to go swimming in those waters. As another two hours ticked by, the water level dropped a few inches, just enough so that it was no longer lapping against his body.

The lizard gazed at the unclean water for the longest time as he acknowledged how dry his mouth was. He pushed himself up onto both sets of hands, his arms trembling severely as they struggled to support his weight. After another few moments of hesitation, he leaned over the base of the tree and shoved his entire head into the filthy water. He opened his mouth and drank as much as his stomach could handle, ignoring the foul taste. He knew the water needed to be purified, but it was simply out of the question. As putrid as the water was, he couldn't go without drinking something, especially considering the fact that he didn't know exactly how long he was going to be stranded on that tree.

Withdrawing his head from the water, Randall gagged and spat, devastated by the fact that he had nothing to rid himself of the foul taste in his mouth. He settled down on his stomach again, peering down into the muddy water and watching as leaves and branches drifted by. His eyes fluttered and he felt certain he would fall asleep, especially considering how much mental and physical stress he had endured the previous night. But as he continued to gaze at the surrounding flood water, he noticed something moving towards him at a rather quick pace. As it drew closer to the tree, Randall was immediately able to identify it as a snake. It slithered through the water with ease, its small elongated head held just above the water's surface. It was black in coloring and appeared to have a lighter colored underbelly. A sharp pang in the pit of his stomach reminded him that he hadn't eaten anything in over ten hours. He couldn't be sure if the snake was venomous, but he dismissed his fear and shot out a hand as the snake swam within reach. He grasped the tiny reptile by the neck and hoisted it out of the water. With very little effort, he pinched the snake's head between two fingers and tore it off. He then crammed the still twitching body into his mouth, sucking in the tip of its tail like a string of spaghetti. The taste wasn't anything worth getting excited over, but the small meal eased his hunger somewhat. Though now he wished he had fresh, clean water to rinse his mouth out with.

Randall settled back down onto the base of the cypress tree and closed his eyes, exhaling tiredly. He knew he would have to wait for the flood waters to recede before he made any attempt to travel, but even if the flooded terrain was not an issue, Randall just didn't think he had enough strength to make it even half a mile. His exhaustion weighed his body down, and he could do nothing more than lay his head against the backpack and rest his tired eyes, knowing full well that he wouldn't be moving from that spot for quite some time.

tbc…


Author's Note: I was totally listening to "God Storm" from the LoP soundtrack while writing this chapter. That track is epic.

Well, that's it for Part One. The story will now go on a temporary hiatus in order to give myself time to write Part Two. I know this first part wasn't very long, but it wasn't meant to be. Part Two will be much longer, probably 10 chapters at least, and it could very easily end up being longer than that. So far the first 3 chapters are done, and the fourth (chapter 8) is already in the works. Ideally, I'd like to wait until Part Two is complete before I start posting it, but given how long it's going to be and how much is still left to be written, I don't know that I can do that. You guys would be waiting months if I did that. I may end up having to post one half of P2 and then take another break and post the second half. I can definitely say that there won't be any updates to this story for at least a month. I haven't been able to work on the story as a whole since I first posted it because I've spent most of my free time just getting each chapter ready for the next Saturday. Now that P1 is out of the way, I can get back to work on moving the story along. Please check my tumblr periodically for updates, as any announcements regarding Part Two will be posted there.

A big thanks to all my reviewers, especially AutumnnPrincess and BadgerWolf, who reviewed faithfully from the beginning. Hope you guys will still be around for Part Two.