AERIS LEGACY
Chapter Five
Zolom × Swamp × Chocobo
*** *** *** ***
She looked at Aeros who had fallen asleep by the dying embers of the fire. He had a half-smile on his face.
Airis sighed. Guys... She left him one of her extra collapsible tents.
Aeros stirred. "Wake up..." Airis muttered checking her bag to make sure Aeros wasn't a thief.
"Morning sir..." Aeros murmured.
"What?"
Aeros suddenly sat up straight and yelled, "GOOD MORNING, SIR!!!"
"Yeek!"
"Aww...dammit." Aeros slapped himself on the forehead. "I gotta stop doing that."
"Why'd you yell that?" Airis asked him.
"That's something we have to do every morning."
"Oh." Airis sort of understood. "So, are we going across the swamp?" She pointed in the direction of the swamp. Aeros looked, not remembering what he'd seen the day before.
"Let's go." They doused the fire and stomped on it, then left.
As they reached the swamp, Airis grimaced. "It looks gross."
Aeros stepped in, expecting to sink. He didn't. "It's fine." Airis went in the murky water. They ran across it, not noticing a dark grayish shadow in the water following them. It attacked.
Airis turned around and shrieked. Behind them was a giant snake-like monster.
Aeros cursed. Airis aimed a slash from her Buster Sword at the overgrown snake. The monster hissed fiercely, and smacked her with its heavy tail.
Airis cast Fire on the beast. Aeros cut a few strokes on the monster's body. The snake attacked again and knocked Airis back to the side of the swamp they had just come from. Aeros ran, knowing he couldn't beat this swamp monster.
Back on land, he knelt over Airis. She was only knocked out, that was good. Aeros picked her up and walked around, hoping to find a place.
He spotted a farm and hurried towards it.
Inside, he found an old man dozing in a chair at the table. His arms being full, Aeros nudged the man with his foot. The old man woke up. "Huh? Oh." He took a look at the muck on the lower portion of Aeros' body and Airis. "Zolom gotcha?"
"What? Zolom? What's that?"
The old man sighed. "You been in the swamp?"
"Yeah, that big snake thing-y attacked us."
"That, boy, is the Zolom. The Midgar Zolom. It tracks prey by the footsteps in the swamp. You'll need Chocobos to get past. They're fast enough. Did you see the two by the fence?"
Aeros nodded.
"Go to the barn. Billy and Chole are there. They'll tell you what you need to know. You can leave the girl here and come back when you're done."
Aeros laid Airis on one of the beds in the adjacent bedroom. He then went to the barn. There was a man there and a woman too. He supposed the man was Billy. "Are you two Billy and Chole?"
The man looked up. "Choco Billy and Chole? That's us. I'm Billy. She's Chole."
"I need to get a Chocobo to cross the swamp."
Choco Billy grinned. "Well, we can't give you the ones by the fence, so you'll have to catch your own. There are some tracks out there. Follow them and you'll probably find a Chocobo. But first, you need a Chocobo Lure Materia."
"Where do I get one?" Aeros asked.
"My dad—the old man in the house—sells them."
Aeros left the barn.
"A bit." Airis said. "Where's this?"
"This..." The man gestured. "...is the Chocobo Farm."
"Where's Aeros?"
"Your boyfriend?"
"He is not my boyfriend!" Airis blushed.
"Sorry, my mistake." The old man stood up. Here, Aeros ran in. "Do you have the Chocobo Lure?"
"Yep." The old man said. "2500 Gil."
Aeros noticed Airis sitting up. "How are you doing?"
"I'm fine. Just a small headache."
Aeros paid the old man, who gave him the purple Materia. He ran out of the house again. "What's he doing?" Airis asked.
"Trying to get a Chocobo."
"Chocobo?"
The old man led Airis outside. "These are Chocobos."
"How cute!" Airis exclaimed.
A Chocobo warked happily.
"Wark!" Airis said back. The Chocobo warked in return and dropped a red Materia into her hand.
"War-ark!" She thanked it.
"Ark!"
"Warrrrrrk, wark!"
"Warkwark! Warrrk!"
"Wark!"
Aeros startled Airis, by coming up behind her. "Having fun?"
"Oh, we were just talking about the weather." She smiled.
"Tsk, tsk. He thinks you're being silly." Airis told Aeros.
"Who?"
"Mr. Chocobo, of course."
Aeros climbed onto the Chocobo. "Wark!" Airis said.
"Wark-wark!" Mr. Chocobo returned, and they were off. He took them through the swamp, dodging the Zolom. When they were safe on the other side, Airis warked. Mr. Chocobo nodded and ran off. "So these are the Mythril Mines?" Aeros asked.
"I think so."
"Let's go."
Did you know the real name for the monster is the Midgard Zolom?
Yeah, the Zolom was a creature... in Norse mythology, I think.
