Chapter 26

Reactions

The next morning, Karai emerged from the inn, having been given one room to use for her stay in Mutopia. The village as a whole puzzled her, with how humans and the many different kinds of beast folk lived and cooperated there as if they were all the same, and yet, she found that admirable.

Despite the heavy rainfall during the early morning, it seemed like the rest of the day would treat them to decent amounts of sunlight and warmth, something that Karai welcomed. While she would have toughed out the hard weather if she had to, she couldn't deny that she was very thankful for the accommodations she had been given.

Still, pleasantries aside, she still had a report to write on the Mutopians, and that meant further investigations into their daily lives.

"I see you're up and about." a voice said to the side of Karai, one that belonged to Leonardo.

"I am." she responded. "One can not sleep all day long when there is work to be done."

"Trust me, having a lot of work here, we know that too. And I'm assuming that your work is the report."

"That is correct." Karai nodded.

"Then allow me to give you a guided tour of our new home."

"A tour?"

"We discussed this last night, Tyroth, Sephie and I, and we agreed that a proper tour would be the best way to let you see all of Mutopia, while also being able to answer your questions. And since I'm Tyroth's steward, that role falls upon me."

"Very well then. Show me your home."

As Leonardo started showing Karai around, some of the Mutopians watched them with great interest, namely Raphael, Michelangelo, Donatello, Monalisa, Splinter and Tyroth.

"I still can't believe this, guys. Another Karai. What are the odds?" said Raphael.

"Not very high, that's certain, but clearly enough for it to happen, as we can see." said Donatello.

"I don't really see why you dudes are so freaked out about this, I mean, I met super versions of us way back, just to name one thing." said Michelangelo. "Sure, that it's Karai is a bit unnerving, but still."

"Mikey's right." said Monalisa. "And I also admit that it is strange to see Karai again, even if it isn't the same Karai, maybe especially so even, but weird and strange have always been our normal. I'm just more concerned about Leo. He and Karai were quite close."

"He's handling it, Mona." said Tyroth. "He came to Sephie to discuss it last night, and felt confident in her advice. Now it all remains to be seen how things go from here. But in the mean time, all of us got more work to do."

"Tyroth is right. There is a lot to do before winter arrives, so off you go, my children." said Splinter.

"Hai, sensei." Monalisa and the three turtles said and walked off to their respective tasks.

Splinter and Tyroth shared a knowing look before parting, one relating to another group they had noticed, one that also watched Leo and Karai.

"This is so spooky." said Pandora as she peeked around the corner of a nearby house. "It's like looking at a ghost. I just couldn't believe it when Mom and Dad told me there was another Karai here."

"I've never seen her before, but even I can see the resemblance between her and you, Kemeko." said Loki.

"As can I, even though I've only ever seen my mother in a few photos." said Kemeko.

"Right, you were too young to remember her, weren't you?" Loki asked and Kemeko nodded.

"Just how do you feel about this anyway?" Pandora asked.

"Honestly, it's a little confusing, but that's about it. I know that she isn't my real mother, even if she is in a way, but still not. I guess that's the confusing part. Other than that, I'm actually not feeling very much about it all."

"So, what are you going to do?" Pandora continued.

"What do you mean, 'what are you going to do'?" Loki interjected. "What can she do? Just walk up to this Karai and say; 'Hi, I'm your daughter from another you of another world'?"

"Um… no. Not now that you've spelled it out like that, at least. But she should say something."

"Guys, please. Don't start arguing." Kemeko interrupted. "I do want to talk to her, out of curiosity, but I don't even know what to say. So instead, I'm just going to wait a while, collect my thoughts a little, and talk to dad about it when I get the chance. Then, maybe, I will talk to her."

"I guess that's fair enough." said Pandora. "By the way, where's Freya? I haven't seen all morning."

"She and Mom headed into the forest earlier." said Loki. "Sis wanted to learn how to use a bow and hunt."

"That's a good idea. Maybe I should ask Aunt Sephie or Mona to teach me too." said Kemeko. "Still, I hope they're okay. We have no real idea of what kind of… creatures live in this area. And we did have a dinosaur on our doorstep when we first got here."

"True that."

Roughly at the same time, deep inside the forest, Sephie and Freya hid behind a large, moss covered boulder, their sights set on a rabbit some twenty meters ahead of them.

"Okay, Freya." Sephie whispered as quietly as she could into her daughter's earhole. "Pull back the arrow. Take aim. Hold you breath and release the arrow."

Freya took aim and steadied her hands, focusing on the rabbit. The critter in question turned its ears, scanning its surroundings for threats again before it started to quickly groom itself.

Having a clear shot, Freya let loose the arrow, but her shot went awry and struck a tree near the rabbit, scaring off the small animal.

"Seems like your aim could use a bit more work, sweetie." Sephie said as the two walked up to the tree and collected the arrow.

"I guess…" Freya said in a voice that sounded almost depressed and she actively avoided meeting her mother's gaze.

"Freya? Is something wrong, dear?" Sephie asked, but Freya didn't answer. "Hey, could you look at me, please? Tell me what's wrong." Sephie said in a soft and kind voice.

But Freya didn't, instead she squeezed her eyes shut and a few tears began to slowly form.

"Freya."

"I missed on purpose, okay!" the geckoling almost yelled. "I couldn't take the shot!"

"Why is that?"

"I just couldn't hurt the bunny! I couldn't! It was too cute!"

"Oh, dear Freya." Sephie gently shushed, embracing her daughter.

"I'm sorry, Mom… You must be so disappointed in me..." Freya sobbed.

"Never, sweetie, never ever." Sephie said, gently kissing Freya on her forehead. "In fact, I'm glad that you told me. You should always tell me or your father if there is something that you're not comfortable with.

That you couldn't take the shot is nothing you should be ashamed of, quite the opposite. Killing is not something that should be taken lightly, no matter if it is small animals or deadly foes. Not everyone can do the deed, nor should they.

You kids haven't had to be in a real fight of life or death yet, but both your father and I have killed many during our fights, especially with the Foot, your father especially, but we've had no other choice.

We've had to learn to deal with the burden that comes with killing, but you haven't, and if it were up to me, you would never have to either. Killing should always be the very last resort.

Sadly, sometimes, the world, both this and our old, forces us to make that decision."

"So you're not angry?"

"No I'm not." Sephie said with a smile. "But there is one thing that I want you to think about. What do you think will happen to that rabbit?"

"What do you mean?"

"If it is lucky, it will live a long life and die of old age, or maybe from some disease before that. But most likely, it will fall prey to some kind of predator before that, a fox, a hawk, or even another hunter. And such is the way of nature I'm afraid. Everything is, ultimately, food for something else in the food chain. It is literally eat or be eaten.

So when we hunt, we take part of the food chain as well, but we still have to make sure our prey doesn't suffer or die in vain. Just like with the dinosaur that Tyroth felled, we have to waste as little as possible, while not taking too much. Had we shot that rabbit, we would have eaten the meat, and used the fur, skin and bones wherever else we could, and return everything else to where it belong."

"I think… I think I understand, Mom."

"Even if you don't, it's okay. Take what time you need to figure it out, and where you stand in this. If you still want to learn to be a hunter for Mutopia, I'm still happy to teach you, but if you feel that it's too much for you, then that's fine too, I won't press it."

"Thanks, Mom."

"Don't mention it, sweetie. You know, I went through the same 'crisis' once."

"You did? When?"

"Back when I was still human, long before I met your father. I was a few years younger than you are now. My grandfather took me hunting several times after he learned that I had an affinity for the bow, and each time I hesitated, just like you did. In the end, I never once shot an animal during our trips, but grandfather wasn't angry or anything, he just told me pretty much what I've told you now."

"Wow. Wish I could have met him."

"So do I. I wish you could have met all of my human family, I think they would have loved you and your brother, but it wasn't safe for them to know, of you, or even of me."

"I'm sorry, Mom."

"It can't be helped, Freya. It's just how things turned out. Come on, let's head back home instead. There are still more things that needs to be done."

As the two reptiles turned around to walk back to the village, Sephie tensed and stopped, scanning the surroundings.

"Mom?"

"Hush! I heard something."

Out from the thicker undergrowth, stepped two wolves, each as large as a mastiff, their eyes set on the mother and daughter, fangs barred and growling as they stepped ever closer, froth in the corners of their mouths.

"Freya, give me my bow, grab your spear and keep back. I'll handle this." Sephie whispered, and her daughter did as told.

"Be careful, Mom."

With an arrow knocked and ready, Sephie positioned herself in between Freya and the wolves, never taking her eyes off of the beasts.

The wolves barked and howled, then both of them dashed towards her, one after the other.

Without hesitation, Sephie dashed towards the wolves as well, and as the first one was almost upon her, she jumped and somersaulted over it, while shooting an arrow into the back of its head, dropping it dead.

By the time Sephie landed, the other wolf leaped against her. Without missing a beat, she let her momentum continue as she dropped and slid underneath the jumping beast, quickly drawing and shooting another arrow right into its heart, killing it before it even hit the ground.

However, there was a third wolf that had been circling around them, and it lunged straight at Sephie while she was distracted. Seeing this, Freya reacted instinctively, and threw her titanium spear with all her might, impaling the wolf through the torso before it got close enough to attack.

As the third wolf fell to the ground, Sephie quickly got back on her feet, drew another arrow and scanned the area for any more wolves, while still keeping an eye on the three they had felled. With nothing else moving, Sephie checked the wolves to make sure that they really were dead.

All the while Freya stared in amazement at the wolf she felled.

"Did… did I really do this?" she asked. "Did I really kill it?"

"That you did, Freya. And that might just have saved me serious injuries."

"But how?"

"Your fight or flight response kicked in."

"I've heard that before, but what does it mean?"

"Basically, when you find yourself in a dangerous situation, like this one was, your brain will decide to either fight the threat or flee from it, and that's an instinctive reflex so it may not be the same as you would have thought you would. In time, you might be able to learn to control it."

"That's actually pretty cool. Almost like a real super power."

"And your abilities to heal quickly, climb on any surface, fly, see in the dark, breath fire and use magic aren't anything special?" Sephie said with a mischievous smile.

"Okay, maybe it's not that super then." Both of them shared a laugh.

"You know something, Freya, even if you don't want to be a hunter, I have no doubt that you'll become a great guardian one day, just like your father."

"You really think so? Thanks, Mom."

"Thank you, for having my back."

"Always!" Freya stated proudly. "So, um… what do we do with these now?" she gestured to the three wolves.

"We take them back with us. Then we'll have them skinned, cut up and taken care of, just like the dinosaur."

"Hmm… think we could make necklaces of their teeth? 'Cause I think I would like one."

"I think so, Freya. I think so." Sephie said with a wide smile.

However, as the two began to make a makeshift sled to transport the wolves on, there was something gnawing on Sephie's mind.

The wolves had been very hostile, more so than was normal, at least on Earth. Maybe it was normal on this world, but it still felt like these wolves were almost feral, and Sephie couldn't help but wonder if that was the case.

While Leo is giving the new Karai a tour of the new Mutopia, those with connections to the old Karai wonder what this will lead to, as I assume some of you readers do too.

Meanwhile, Sephie and Freya had a mother daughter moment, complete with angry wolves.

Just another day. :)