Author's Note: Hello everyone. I hope you are all doing well and keeping safe in these troubled times with the world being on lockdown. Please make sure you stay safe, clean and avoid unnecessary interactions and we will all get through this.
Trudging through the forest for hours on end, even for a gigantic ape carrying a human passenger, was tiring, and the fact they were hoping to get back there quickly so they could find a way off the island. Plus, there was the fact that Moana had not eaten for almost the whole of the last few days and a small drink from the pool – this was done when her ape companion had given her some water as she had been passing in and out of consciousness – had been the only quench of thirst since arriving here. When they had stopped and found some fruit, Moana had wolfed it down so voraciously that it had resembled a predator tearing into a kill, something she noticed quickly and stopped and, avoiding meeting Kong's gaze, tried to eat normally, though the restraint to tear it apart was hard.
They continued on from there, going back through some of the places Moana had previously visited, such as the 'Boneyard', where her ape companion had paused for a moment and stared at the large skeletal remains of what had been the larger animals she had seen in the vision. Then they passed close to the smaller lake where Kong had fought the other creature that could shoot fire (Moana grimaced when they passed here). The last main area was a small river with a path of crushed trees and vegetation – the two of them remembering this was where the 'Howlers' had pursued Moana and Kakalina. All the while, they heard the sounds of the island around and below them, some beautiful, others hauntingly familiar of the danger they had put the Kalean chieftain and her people and companions in over the last few days, making her cling to her ape friend tightly akin to a child clinging to their parent for protection.
As they went, Kong seemed to be scanning their surroundings rather nervously every few minutes, fearing that his steps through the jungle would alert something to their presence. Even though he towered over many of the trees by a good few dozen feet, he kept glancing around as if fearing something was hiding. Moana saw him do this. You would think, dear readers, she would be at a loss to understand what would be trying to hurt them – he was practically the biggest thing around after all – but she knew all to well. The battles with the Gowa creature still haunted him, and with a small passenger now it just made him more on edge. As far as he and Moana knew, at any moment Gowa could find them and tear them apart and gobble the chieftain up for lunch.
She was probably watching them right now, hiding in the undergrowth, silent, patient, a bloodlust raring to be satiated.
"Maui?" Moana spoke up after a long silence, causing the gigantic ape to stop by another river, larger than the aforementioned, but small enough for Kong to step over as if stepping over a puddle. He looked at her. "Do you think …" a pause. She feared to say the name. "Do you think Gowa is … following us?" she asked, voice trembling a little.
Kong exhaled heavily and gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, looking at Moana with an anxious expression: "I hope not."
She nodded and silence fell between them as he continued on, pushing a small group of trees out of the way. Not really the answer she was hoping to receive, but then again what could he say. Oh, it's terrifying to know that an alpha predator could be hunting us and will kill us the moment we happen to cross her path. Plus, the language, or gesture barrier between them was a bit of an issue. All she could do was sit in silence, hold on tight, and hope. Hope, as Kong crashed through the jungle towards an uncertain future, and hopefully ending to their current predicament, that they would be able to leave this Lalotai incarnate.
Relief. That was how they could sum up how they felt. Sheer relief. Though their eyes fell upon the familiar deserted and destroyed remains of the village near the large river that cut into the island from the beach, there was one thing that stood out from before – it was empty.
"Alright, pull it in close to the shore!" Atoni commanded, surveying the land around them, double checking to make sure nothing was hiding, waiting to pounce.
The adult men and women on board obeyed, using their oars to steer the boat towards the right bank. When it was close enough, Atoni, Tama and several others jumped off and grabbed some rope and pulled the craft over and tied it to several wooden poles in the ground to keep it there. The few children on board wanted to leave, but some of the adults shushed them and kept them on board, fearing for their safety. The last thing they needed was for one of them to get lost or taken and add another death to the unknown, but high number who had already fallen victim to this place.
Atoni scanned the surroundings once again. Tama and Aheti had already told him of what had happened with the large mantis-like creatures, which Atoni had identified as being Kamacuras when in the cave, when the Kaleans and their companions had arrived days earlier, he had feared running into them again. That they were not here was comforting, but it did little to prevent the chill from running down his spine as he saw the destruction of the village before him.
As you already know, dear readers, he had been here when the settlement was attacked and the inhabitants were left fleeing for their lives in abject terror, unguided, unknowing of where to go and what to do, or even if they would survive. Many people would have to close their eyes to relive such moments, but for him this was not so. He could recollect it all clearly as if he were there once again; the gigantic insectoid monsters crushing buildings, shearing walls and roofs apart as if they were toys, chomping down on and swallowing people of all ages, shapes and size like pieces of fruit. The screams of the women, the cries of the children, the panic and shouts of the men and the groans of the dying and the sight of the dead. All of it made him feel sick, and somewhat guilty. He had survived. Why had he survived? Was this the gods' work? Were they predetermined to come and die here like some kind of natural order? That surely was not meant to happen, right?
Why I survived isn't important right now he mentally told himself. Right now, it's getting the last of us here off this damn island! He looked around again and at the river, not seeing what he had been told the others had come to the island on. Question is: how?
"Atoni?" Tama asked, walking up to him with Aheti and a few of the adults. "Should we move on? The boats aren't here like we thought. The Kamacuras must've wrecked them."
Atoni thought for a moment, then spoke. "Look around first, they might still be here. Check everywhere. If we don't find anything after ten minutes, we leave."
The others nodded and split up, walking off in different directions to search for their seafaring vessels, hoping against hope that they were still here. But even if they were, there was the question in the back of their minds: would they be seaworthy? If they were too damaged or broken in two, then they were stuck with the small craft they arrived on, and whilst it could float, it was not built for the open ocean, and having a lot of people was only going to make it much harder, and their chances of survival were destined to dwindle.
In short, going out on the sea was just as likely going to kill them as was staying here unless they found the ships.
Atoni walked into one of the buildings near the docks, seeing the remains of one of the vessels, broken and half-sunk in the river next to the walkway. Damn! That would have made things a little easier, but the Kamacuras had stopped that.
Those ships better be out there he mentally told himself.
"Chief!" a voice, one of the Skull Islanders he recognised, urgently called to him from outside.
He rushed forward and saw those in the group scattered across the immediate area in the village dive for cover; Tama hiding behind a large rock a few metres away. Behind them, the adults on the boat grabbed the children and threw them to the floor, shielding them with their bodies.
"Chief, look!" Tama said, pointing out to the forest.
Atoni looked and saw the dark head of something approaching, bobbing up and down as it went akin to someone floating in the water. Even though it still had a bit of a way to go before it reached the clearing, he could hear loud cracks and breaks from the foliage caving under the creature's advance. Fearing that it was a predator, he rushed and hid behind the remains of a torn structure that had a large tarp over part of it as a sort of makeshift roof (this being one of the 'tents' the Kaleans had set up shortly after their arrival). He held his breath, pressed up against the last standing wall of the structure and waited for the inevitable attack.
One moment passed.
Two. The trees falling was much louder now and he could feel the heavy footfalls of the creature.
Three. A loud CRASH emanated from outside – probably a large tree falling.
Then it was silent. Atoni listened. Where were the roars? The screams? The running? What was this creature doing? Was it not going to attack them; not that he wanted it to happen, but having been here for a long time, it was natural for his people to flee the moment a large creature of any sort was nearby. What was going on with this one?
"Atoni, come out!" Tama called.
Is he mad? Tama thought. What if it's going to kill us?! Then again, why hasn't it attacked already?
Swallowing hard and gathering courage, he stepped outside and looked in the direction of the beast. He gasped, speechless.
"Kong!" he muttered.
Standing near the treeline a few hundred feet away from him, his dark, muscular, hairy body sticking out like a sore black thumb against the green forest and blue sunny sky, was the gigantic ape. The head turned left and right, scanning the area like a guard on duty. When he looked to the right, the head stopped, a look of surprise came on, and he began to slowly walk in that direction.
"I can't believe it!" Tama breathed as he walked over. Behind them, several others emerged. "What's he doing here?"
Good question. "I hope nothing bad to do with us," Atoni muttered anxiously in reply.
"Wait!" Aheti called from nearby, emerging from behind another rock. Her call attracted the attention of Kong, and on his shoulder a figure stood up more clearly. "Chief!" Aheti exclaimed happily. Tama looked and found himself jumping for joy. She was alive!
Kong gently picked up the chieftain and set her on the ground and she rushed forward and embraced Aheti tightly, holding her close akin to a mother finding her missing child. Aheti returned the embrace, a few tears running down her face. The leader she beloved and held dear was alive! Despite all of the chaos and terror, despite all the predators and attacks, despite everything that had happened on this island, she had made it.
Moana withdrew. "I'm so glad you're alive!" she said to Aheti and looked around, noticing Tama the others. "Who are these people with you?"
Atoni stepped forward and gave a low bow. "Atoni, chief of one of this – or what was this village," he greeted. "Moana, thank you very much for coming here. I'm most grateful."
She gave a small nod and looked back at Kong, who was kneeling behind her. "I … uh, hope you don't mind. I brought a friend."
Above them, Kong gave a small nod and a smile, showing his large teeth, though stopped when he saw a few of the humans glance nervously at each other. Several of the Skull Islanders were coming over from the boat, gazing in awe at the enormous creature before them.
"H-how did you do it?" Atoni asked, aghast.
"Sing?" Aheti inquired.
Moana rolled her eyes, tittering a little. "Sadly, no. Believe it or not, this-" he pointed at Kong "-is Maui."
Aheti's face fell with shock. Atoni, Tama and the other Skull Islanders looked at each other with expressions of: Seriously? Is she joking? Some even muttered "Maui?" "The demigod?!" "Can't be!"
"I know, it's crazy." Moana told them. "But here he is."
"H-how?" Tama asked, looking up in awe at the gigantic ape as he stood up, fixated on something nearby.
"I'll explain later. Is there a boat we can use to get off the island?" Moana asked.
"The one we used to get here isn't big enough for that," Aheti explained, motioning over to said vessel in the river. "We came here looking for the boats we arrived on, but we haven't found them yet."
Kong gave a grunt and, standing to his full height, stepped over them and towards a large pile of building remains along with a large boulder about the height of a man. When he reached it, he knelt down and picked up something large in his two hands and turned to show it to the humans. It was one of the boats, the larger Kalean vessel they had set out on. It had seen better days though; the sail was snapped, there were claw and scratch marks scattered all over its wooden surface, the mast was gone and part of the sail hung on the end of the vessel, torn, the Kalean and Montunui marks gone like a distant memory of home.
"Nice work, Maui!" Moana exclaimed, rushing over; the others following close behind.
He looked it over in his hand whilst running his fingers over it. Then he looked down at the humans with an expression that told them: It's not in a good condition.
Moana nodded. "Yeah, not the best," she muttered, turning to the others. "But we can make it seaworthy again, and get back to Kalea."
"Are you sure, Moana?" Aheti asked, pointing up at the vessel. "I mean, what if it breaks?"
"Yes, I'm sure!" she snapped angrily, startling her fellow Kalean and the others around her as she glared at them. How dare they question me?! I'm the chieftain! I-
She stopped, realising what she had done. "I-I'm sorry!" she said, looking away as the others exchanged nervous looks with each other and Kong, who bit his lower lip in worry as he set the boat down in the river.
A loud CRASH and CRACK of trees startled everyone. Looking over, their blood turned cold.
Coming before them was a large mantis-like creature. Seeing them in the daylight, their dark brown skin glowed, their large gold eyes glaring viciously at them, the mandibles opening and snapping shut loudly, appendages hitting the ground so hard they kicked up dirt and cracked nearby trees like toothpicks. Night or day, seeing them was still terrifying.
"It's a Kamacuras!" Atoni breathed, though he wanted to scream and run.
What was worse, another of the creatures, smaller and skinnier than the first, rose up from the trees to the left on its hind legs, just about reaching the height of its mate. It was smaller yes but looked just as mean. A third appeared to the right of the now middle Kamacuras, this one being about the same size, though it had an eye missing. They saw Kong and his human companions and bared their teeth, growling and hissing intimidatingly.
One leader, one youngling, and a blind one, all ready for a meal.
The humans looked on in terror, some of the Skull islanders rushing back to the boats as the children began to cry and panic.
"We need to leave!" Atoni spoke up firmly, voice dripping with fear.
Behind them, Kong stood up and growled, a nasty scowl on his face as if he were a man seeing insects in his home. Well then, he was going to get rid of them. With a grunt at the humans, he motioned for them to hide and advanced towards the mantises. The three creatures too moved forward, growling.
Moana ducked into a building with Tama and a Skull Islander lady, the three of them watching as Kong stopped just short of the treeline and gave a small roar. Leave! You will not harm the humans!
The youngest Kamacuras screeched and charged forward, knocking aside trees and tearing up foliage as it went. Kong simply held his ground, bewildering the humans who watched as the young Kamacuras cleared the treeline and leapt towards the ape, mouth open and dripping with saliva, ready to rip into him. Kong remained still. Moana yelled out, fearing the worst.
What happened next was almost a blur. One moment the Kamacuras was rushing at Kong, the next, a loud boom shook the ground as it was slammed into the earth like a giant stomping its foot. The humans instinctively ducked as the shock wave from the boom hit them, but when they stood up again they saw Kong with the now dead young Kamacuras in his hand, it being only about a third of his body size. Its head was now crushed and the mouth hung open and the limbs were lifeless.
Remind myself not to piss Maui off again! Moana made a mental note.
Another screech, this time deeper and louder. A short, loud bark followed. Kong looked up and was forced to the ground by a wall of brown. The older Kamacuras had charged full speed into him, probably enraged at the death of its younger companion, and was now pinning Kong down with one of its long legs and by pushing its body onto his whilst trying to bite him. Kong held the creature back with his arm, only just missing a few snaps of the beast's powerful jaws, and tried to punch it off with his other, but to no avail. The blind Kamacuras, moving slower because of its physical disadvantage, ambled over, eager to join in.
"Maui!" Moana cried out. She moved to rush out there, but Tama grabbed her. "Tama, let me go!" she raged at him, the look in her eyes turning primal as they had before at the lake.
"No, you'll die!" he said, pulling her back.
A roar of pain made them look back. The blind Kamacuras had bitten down on Kong's punching arm. Blood flowed. Kong tried to shake it off, but the creature did not relent. The leading Kamacuras, meanwhile, forced Kong's other arm aside and clamped down on his neck. Kong gasped. He had to act now.
He thrust his knee upwards, right into the Kamacuras' abdomen. He must have hit something vital because he heard a loud CRACK and the beast screeched in agony, falling off to the side. Kong then grabbed it by the head and threw it into the surprised blind Kamacuras, sending both into a tangled mess into a nearby boulder.
Moana and the others watched Kong stand up, wincing in pain as blood dripped from the bite marks. The two Kamacuras picked themselves up and screeched and growled at their bipedal enemy. He had hurt them, but they were going to beat him, and enjoy ripping him apart and feasting on his remains. Yet Kong was undeterred, and he growled, baring his teeth, a clear: Come on! Give me your best shot!
The mantises charged again. Kong too rushed them. Moana and the other humans winced or covered their eyes, fearful for what was next.
When they were within grabbing distance, Kong threw himself forward into a ball and slammed into both giant mantises, knocking both off their feet before they knew what had happened. With both down, the ape got up, grabbed both by the back of their necks, spread his arm and, with one sickening CRACK, slammed them together. Both were killed instantly, their bodies limp, mouths open and eyes – or eye considering the blind one – squashed.
The humans emerged from their hiding places as Kong dropped the deceased giant insects, exhaling heavily. Whilst it had not been as tough as with the Sharpteeth, or even the Godzillasaurus, they had managed to wound him. He winced as he wiped the blood from his arm.
"Maui, you okay?" Moana said, running over to him.
He nodded, though his gritted teeth and pained expression said otherwise, but shushed off Moana's further attempts to have a look at the wound. It's fine, don't worry about it.
"Chief!" Aheti called out from nearby. "We check the boat and then get out of here."
"What about the sail?" one of the Skull Islanders pointed out. "We still need it if we want to get off the island and back to your home island."
Moana nodded, thought for a moment, then ordered: "Use the tarps from the tents, see if we can make it into a sail."
As those around her set about working on making said necessary item, Moana turned back to Kong. "Alright, Maui," she said, walking up to the giant ape. "Are you sure you're okay?"
He nodded again, though he let out a grunt with a pained expression as he tried to move his fingers. It had stopped bleeding at least. Moana was going to speak, but he stopped her and pointed at the boat, and then for himself. What about a boat for me?
The Kalean chieftain looked around the village area. Obviously, there were no enormous boats lying around, and even the big one they had was not big enough to hold something like Kong in its best condition. If he was to use it now, it would no doubt break in two, or at least sink. No, they were going to have to build one. But with what exactly?
"W-what about … if we get trees and … tie them together?" she suggested. "D'you think that'll be enough?"
Kong pondered for a moment, looking at the surrounding forests. There were more than enough trees to build some kind of crude craft for him, but would it work? He had never tried it before, and his new body was likely going to cause a problem or two. Still, they had to give it a go. Part of her even began to humorously wonder what it would be like when they turned up on Kalea and she explained who their new friend is.
Mum and dad will be … speechless, for lack of a better word.
Something crashed in the jungle at the opposite end of the clearing. Everyone looked up from what they were doing, something they quickly came to regret.
Shoving a tree aside aggressively, a large blood red beast emerged, crawling on all fours like a cat sneaking up on its prey. When it reached the edge of the clearing, it rose up on all two legs, towering over the trees, surveying the destroyed village with glee. It caught sight of the dead Kamacuras, the humans and, to her surprise, Kong; the latter two having seen her and were now wore terrified looks.
"It's Gowa!" Moana heard Atoni cry out from somewhere nearby.
As if spurred on by the sound of her name, Gowa smiled evilly, bared her large clawed hands and sharp teeth, glaring out at the little human morsels she was so eager to devour. Then she looked up at Kong, seeing the wound on his arm and the fain scars on his body from their last battle, and various others before then. Nasty, devilish thoughts ran through the beast's mind, ones she was going to enjoy acting on.
Kong moved forward, grabbed Moana (she yelped loudly when he did this) and carried her over to the boat, dropping her next to it and motioned for them to go. Before the chieftain or anyone else could even reply, the giant ape turned back to Gowa and advanced a few tens of metres towards her, glaring dangerously and pounding the ground with his fists to intimidate her.
Gowa smiled and stepped a few paces out of the forest, purring in a satisfied manner. I'm going to enjoy ripping you apart!
Kong stopped and huffed at her, growling deeply as he stood tall and puffed out his chest, determined to protect his human friends. You won't have them. You have to go through me first!Gowa snapped her teeth together, accepting the challenge. So be it!The blood red creature inhaled and let out a screech-roar that would have sent chills down the spine of Te Fiti herself.
Kong roared back in return, pounding his chest like a war drum.
"Maui!" Moana cried out from the boat.
The final showdown between two top animals on Skull Island was about to commence.