Chapter 11 - The Baka Inu
Author's Note: The title of this chap probably tells you what the main character is, but I have to say, I'm beginning to wonder if I should just change the title to simply Fall of Weyard... Oh well. If you have thoughts, I'd love to hear them.
On that note, I was suprised at how brief all the reviews were. I was expecting at least one reviewer to ask me to explain to fix confusion, yet everyone seemed to understand it. Well, as much as I expected, as there are a... few things yet to be explained...
And without further ta do, here's the stupid dog's trip into
Disclaimer: See Chapter 10
Pulling the hood of his new cloak over his head, Inubaka walked out of the inn, marveling at the sheer chaos before him. After leaving their ship and entering the neighboring town, the group consisting of a drunk, a half-wolfman, a healer, and an other-worldly being traversed the streets of the so-called "Dominion of Free Traders."
And if ever there was an example of just what a "Free Trader" was, the view from the inn was the perfect one. The buildings were close enough together that dedicated pathways were formed between the lines of buildings. Each entrance was swarmed with booths, vendors, merchants, theives, thugs, and about any other variety one could think of. The fact that the clouds overhead gave the whole city a dark and dreary feel did not help matters.
Inubaka was quite grateful that few had noticed him as they entered the town (and glad that no one noticed Terra or Sutseu, or whatever his name was; bloodshead would NOT help right now), and extremely grateful that the innkeeper was willing to let him stay and borrow his cloak. Having had to protect himself in more civilized and organized areas had taught him that many were not quite comfortable around a being with dog ears, a tail, and hairy appendages.
Once they had eventually accepted the only room the inn had available, Meitei had taken flight, presumably to find the first pub that would let him run up a tab. Setus (no, that was not it; why was it so hard to remember his name? He had never had this problem before) had insisted that Terra freshen up while he stood guard. Inubaka hoped that was all he did, knowing all-too well about what most males saught with Terra, and the thought of staying in the inn once again crossed his mind.
Yet something told him that it would be best to not meddle in their affairs; besides, Terra seemed attracted to him, and he seemed to have a soft spot for her. If it was some kind of act, Inubaka did not see it. What he did see, though, was a pub with quite a bit of noise coming from inside. Shortly thereafter, a few people ran down the street, shoving him aside, with four more people shoving him down shortly thereafter. The knowlege that the last four were chasing the first three did not exaclty make his tail or knees feel any better.
Rising from the sludge that was (hopefully) old food rotted a few weeks, he noticed a figure just behind him, also wearing a cloak with a hood. Though the figure appeared to be minding his own business, something told Inubaka to keep on his toes. Given that the Tolbibi Empire's army appeared in Ima so suddenly and so prepared had heightened his paranoia, and the sight of a suspicious figure did not help any.
Ducking down a side street, Inubaka growled as he passed a cat, irritated that the blasted thing happened upon him at this moment. He needed to dissapear, and it would be quite the challenge to conseal himself when he was instincively growling every minute. Taking another turn, he waited against a back wall, hopeful that his shadower would appear, enabling Inubaka to try to capture and ask him a few questions.
An object moved in the corner of his eye; unfortunately, it was on the wrong side. Another person had happened upon him, a sharp blade held at Inubaka's neck. "Move and die."
Inubaka knew that his skin was far more resilliant than a normal human's, but even he couldn't survive having his throat slit. He tried to think of any possible way to elude the person beside him, tried to think of how he could get away.
To his disgust, the guy (or was it a girl? What was standing beside him?) simply held the blade at his throat, as if waiting for something. What could he be waiting for, given that the blade would eventually weaken his hand. Inubaka took a deep breath, trying to clear his mind, but only added a few questions to his thoughts.
For one, the "person" beside him, despite the stench around their position, was not like any he had smelled on a being before, human or Inubal. For another, there was the stench of human sweat just above him, and it was all Inubaka could do to not move.
His efforts to keep still were soon rewarded when the person above him fell right on top of the thing beside him, and to Inubaka's horror, the figure that had falled wore a cloak and was cutting into the falling creature with a madness he had rarely seen before.
And every time he had, it was one of pure hate.
Eventually, the man stood up, and Inubaka's eyes widened in recognition of the figure before him. "You...you..." Shaking his head, he decided not to open possible old-wounds; maybe he could turn this to an advantage.
The man ignored him, staring at the figure below him. Inubaka stared at it, eyes widening at its skin tone, a color only seen on rotting courpses, a pale yellowish-white, its skin tightly bound against its skeletal frame. Yet for as frail as it looked, it had held such a heavy blade for so long. How...?
"Ever seen a nulman before?
"Not the most attractive of creatures. If not for their controllers, they would be about as intelligent as a damned turnip. Yet when fed thoughts, they are stronger than most men, able to keep fighting when a limb is lost, and only succumb to the complete destruction of the brain.
"Get used to them, as I think we'll see a few more."
Inubaka cringed at the description, and had to think to realize what the person said. "We?"
The man nodded. "Go tell Terra and that...person to meet me at the Haakari Pub in a half-hour; tell them that Yul wants to propose a truce."
I can't think of anything to say, except that a potentially fluffy romance-filled chapter between Setsu and Terra is coming up in the near future. Just a bit of notice/warning, as I thought of a nifty idea. And before I say too much, I thank you again for reading.
Please read and review, as I do value feedback. Say what you will, just remember that I am a human being, though elements know I wish I was more than it at times...
MIKAA