DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN METAL FIGHT BEYBLADE
It has been four days since the group had left their campsite, and Kenta and Ryuga were as healthy as ever—well, Ryuga's deeper wounds were still healing, but he was progressively better than he was when he fell out of the sky and into a tree. They had been traveling little by little each day—as Kenta and Ryuga had insisted—and no one was even sure how much further Goren was. They stayed away from the roads, in fear of being spotted by Fortissimus soldiers, or Gaelleon authorities who might slow them down.
Everyone in the group was in high spirits.
Well, not Ryuga—he was still depressed over the loss of thirteen arrows and his hunting knife, and the barely-there damage inflicted on his bow when he had dropped it to run, as well as the fact that he was not allowed to use his bow due to some of the deeper wounds still healing.
In Gingka's point of view, the archer was being a whiner baby.
However, despite the fact that he was glad that his companions have recovered, Gingka was arguing with himself. After all, they had been attacked by a gigantic winged snake, and two of their best fighters got injured, on the very first day. So, yes, he would have to be a fool or an optimist not to have any doubts about the entire journey at all.
Currently, they were walking—or in Kenta's case, being carried by Benkei, as he was not supposed to strain his foot—in a steady, but not too rapid, pace as they slowly, but surely, made their way to Goren.
"Hikaru," Gingka said.
The blue-haired girl—the group's official navigator—turned to him as she hopped upon a particularly gnarly tree root. "Yes, Gingka?"
"How far is Goren from Ensis?"
"I would say a three day's travel on horseback, or a week's travel on foot..."
Gingka grinned. "That doesn't seem so bad."
"It depends if we run into anyone... or anything," she added with a glance at Ryuga. Her violet eyes flashed with anxiety, and something else... Gingka couldn't quite put a finger on it. "I'm not sure I can handle it if anyone gets hurt."
Gingka nodded. "Me neither."
Suddenly, Kyoya's voice cut through the air like a knife. "I could hear the river. It's just up ahead."
Gingka strained his ears, trying to listen, but heard nothing. "You sure have a good ear, Kyoya. I can't hear it at all." He hoped that there really was a river ahead of them—their water supply was gone, he hadn't seen a good water source in days, and he was thirsty.
The older teen glanced over his shoulder. "You can't hear it? Huh."
When they arrived at the river several minutes later, Gingka yanked off his shirt and boots, and jumped into the cold, clear water and plunged his head in, drinking to his heart's content and splashing water everywhere. "Water!" he yelled. He sat on the slippery brown river floor, trying not to get swept away by the strong current. "Fresh, sweet, precious water!"
"You're so immature," he heard Hikaru mutter. She and Madoka knelt down and began to refill the waterskins whilst Benkei picked up the sharpened stick he'd been using as a spear and set off to scout the area for potential threats, Kyoya trailing not far behind him. Kenta slowly eased himself on a rock next to the river, slid off his shoes, and dipped his feet in the water, using his hands to scoop up water and throw some at Gingka. Finally, Gingka just pulled the smaller boy into the water.
"Gingka!" Kenta sputtered. He took off his belt and tunic. "You're so gonna get it!" he said.
Gingka struggled to get away from his friend's wrath. However, both boys were careful—because of Kenta's leg, he just sat in the shallow areas and tried not to move, giving Gingka an unfair advantage. Madoka and Hikaru eventually joined their little water-fight, followed by Benkei.
Kyoya and Ryuga—ever the mature ones—sat by on the shore and watched, occasionally picking up stones and skipping them across the calmer parts of the river.
"Come on in, you guys!" Madoka yelled. "The water's great!"
Ryuga shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest. Kyoya, however, smirked and took off his shirt, belt, and boots, and waded into the river. He immediately splashed his way towards Kenta and dunked the younger boy's head underwater.
The group set up camp underneath a large willow tree just a few yards away from the river, concealing themselves underneath the long leaves and letting the moon, stars, and the dozens of tiny fireflies light up their surroundings. The night was hot and humid—Gingka had to take off his undershirt, leaving only his oversized vest as his upper body wear, whilst Kyoya, Kenta, and Benkei suffered due to their long sleeves.
Kenta grinned from his seat on the tree's root—his face lit up by blue firefly lights—content with the hearty meal that had been prepared. "I've never had so much fun in a long time."
"Agreed," Gingka said, trying to catch one of the fireflies, so far, with no good results. He was standing on a rock, thinking that it could give him an advantage. However, the fireflies just didn't seem to like him at all that much, which was frustrating.
"Makes me miss that pond in Ensis even more," Benkei chimed in, sighing.
"Ugh—did you have to remind us?" Madoka groaned, flopping onto her back on the ground with a big sigh as well. Personally, Gingka agreed with her—he did not need to be reminded of what has once been his home.
Benkei blushed. "Sorry."
"Well, we're some of the few survivors of Ensis," Hikaru pointed out, brushing her blue curls with her fingers. "So, maybe we should try to keep the memory of our city alive." She turned to Ryuga. "Did you used to swim in that pond, too?"
"No," the archer said indifferently as he squinted, examining his bow under the dim blue lights. "I suppose you never had, either."
"Never," Hikaru admitted.
"We should get some sleep," Kyoya said. "We have a long day tomorrow."
He had been quiet for so long that Gingka had forgotten he was even with them.
As everyone else laid down to sleep, Gingka stared at the firefly flitting around his face and cupped it between his hands, grinning as it crawled over his palms and fingers, leaving tickling sensations. It flexed its wings a few times, its light never wavering once.
The blue fireflies drifted around the banks of the river in an ethereal dance, turning the leaves of the willow tree blue-green, like water.
Gingka was tempted to stand up and dance along with them.
"There are some stepping stones right over there," Kyoya said, pointing to some rocks protruding from the surface of the water right before a gentle slope. The group was about to set out on their journey once again.
Ryuga's amber eyes were narrowed and suspicious as he stared across the river and into the shadows of the woods beyond, as if studying them. Suddenly, his gaze turned darker. "I say we walk a few more miles, then cross."
"Don't be stupid, Ryuga," Kyoya said. "It's too early to go into the water. Besides, Kenta can't swim—because of his leg, and because he never learned, remember?"
"I'm fine, you guys!" Kenta protested.
"We could wade across the river—it's barely waist-deep," Ryuga said through clenched teeth. "One of us could carry Kenta."
"Hey!"
"And risk catching cold?" Kyoya snapped back. "I say we get our butts on the other side while the sun's still up to dry our clothes!"
"We could slip on the rocks and fall into the river!"
"Ryuga," Gingka said, uncomfortable that his companions were arguing. Plus, the others were too nervous to dare to cut into the argument between the two warriors. "Maybe we should just cross now. The rocks seem safe enough, and who knows what's ahead?"
"Oh, sure, take his side!"
"I'm not—"
"Just... whatever." Ryuga picked up his bow. "But I have a bad feeling about this..."
They crossed the stones, with only a few close calls with Benkei and Kenta, but they managed to get to the other side of the river. Kyoya sent a triumphant look Ryuga's way. "See? We crossed this way, and nothing bad happened."
The archer muttered something that nobody seemed to hear as the group once again plunged into the shadowy forest. The trees towered over them, the branches much too high to reach from the ground, but the leaves at the top were thin and let sunlight pass, lighting their way.
They have been walking for about five minutes when...
Hissssss...
A duck.
That was pretty much the closest description that Gingka could give the tiny, auburn-feathered bird before them, which had to be the ugliest bird ever. Its beady red eyes blinked.
Now, Gingka wished that Kyoya had taken Ryuga's advice.
Another slow hiss came out of the duck's muck-green bill, which was lined with crooked yellow fangs the size of Kenta's pinkie fingernail. Something behind the bird hissed as well, and Gingka was surprised to see a small brown cobra rise into sight, waving from side to side menacingly. Gingka hoped that it would eat the duck, but instead, it leaned forwards so that its head was right above the duck's, and it spat a clear liquid out of its fangs. The substance landed on Hikaru's right shoe, and immediately, the sturdy leather began to disintegrate until the entire shoe was gone.
Hikaru looked down at her foot, which was already starting to swell and redden. Ugly blisters popped up all over the dark skin slowly, starting from the spot that the acid had landed on. The blue-haired girl's breathing quickened as she opened her mouth to scream.
But before a single sound could pass Hikaru's lips, Kenta jumped up and clamped a hand over her mouth and put the other on her neck. Hikaru reflexively hunched her shoulders and tried to pry Kenta off her. "Whatever you do," Kenta whispered, his mouth barely moving; "make no sudden movements. It's an Interfectorum Avis—Assassination Bird."
Hikaru's eyes were brimming with tears.
Ignoring Kenta's warning, Ryuga pulled an arrow from his quiver and loaded his bow without taking his eyes off the Avis. He drew back his bowstring. "The thing's in our way," he growled.
"Ryuga, no!" Kenta hissed in dismay. The arrow was already rocketing towards the beast, piercing one of the ruby-red eyes with the accuracy only a master archer can possess. The creature fell dead to Kyoya's feet, sluggish, steaming brown blood seeping out of its eye socket. Kyoya stepped backwards in disgust.
Suddenly, several bird-headed Avis flew out of the surrounding forest behind the first one, snake tails hissing furiously as they settled on the branches above the intruders.
Gingka gulped nervously, feeling his heart beat quickly.
"They travel in flocks," Kenta said. It was too late, however. The creatures charged towards the group, beaks, bills, and snake-jaws open, sharp teeth glinting in the little sunlight that managed to penetrate the treetops. They spread their wings.
"Run!" Kyoya yelled. He needn't say it twice. In fact, he needn't say it at all. Benkei had already picked up Hikaru—who was already dozing off into unconsciousness—and was crashing through the undergrowth, screaming maniacally. Gingka burst into an all-out sprint, propelled by fear for himself and his companions—but as ashamed he was to admit it, mostly, he was scared for himself.
He could hear the flapping of the birds' wings as they took off after the travelers in hot pursuit. He carefully looked back and instantly regretted it. The Avis were blurs of varying sizes, of varying shades of brown, but he could still hear their distinct high-pitched shrieks and hisses as they started to gain on them.
Drops of acid rained down. Gingka yelped as burning sensations sprouted on his back, neck, and pretty much everywhere else. He stepped into a puddle of acid, and he felt his feet blazing as if they had been set on fire.
Ryuga appeared next to Gingka, matching his strides step by step. His left ear was bleeding, and so was a gash on the left side of his forehead, the blood getting into his eye and giving his black tunic a reddish tint. However, his amber irises were shining with a bloodthirsty—almost insane—light and his mouth was curved into a hungry, fanged smirk as he loaded his bow with three arrows, and those he let fly without even a backwards glance. Shrill screeches pierced the air as several Avis bodies fell, the heavier ones making a louder impact on the ground.
"To the river!" he heard Kenta yell. "Hurry!"
Gingka didn't argue with him. Soon, the spongy forest floor turned into hot stones of several shapes and sizes, which dug into his bare, blistered feet. Gritting his teeth, he waded into the river, the cold water cooling his acid injuries and making the pain slightly more bearable.
"Can't those things swim?" he heard Kyoya yell.
"Some of them can!" Kenta replied. "But the snakes don't like it, even though they know how to swim too!"
When the birds went away—which wasn't until night—they set up camp to heal their wounds. Ryuga's golden eyes flashed as he glared at Kyoya.
"I told you we shouldn't have crossed there."
Sorry for the suckish chapter. I was rushing, because it was my only opportunity to use the computer.
Please review!