Lily let out a weak noise as she rolled over, her body aching as she moved. She blinked a few times and looked next to her; the little flying monster lay limp on the piece of broken ship next to her. She scrambled over to the monster, her eyes glued on his small body. "Little monster!" She gave him a few squeezes, a shaky breath leaving her when he coughed up salty ocean water.
"B-B…Builder?"
"It's me! You're safe now!" She hugged the monster to her chest. "We're safe now."
Lily looked around; tears burned her eyes as she got up. She walked around, trying to find something… anything to help them. But there was nothing around them, just sand and rocks.
"Where am I? How did I even get here?"
Lily whirled around, trying to pinpoint the sound of the voice she just heard echoing around her. She looked over, seeing an outcrop. She slowly walked over, pushing through the brush and shrubs that covered a hole in the rocks and dirt. When she broke through, she saw someone standing on a rock that jutted out over the water.
"The sky's such a strange color… Have I died and gone to heaven? Or hell, more likely…" The figure turned quickly when they heard something rustling around behind them. "Huh? What was that noise?" The person ran along the rock, looking over at Lily. "Hey, Bunches! Finally, a live one! Who the heck are you? Say, you wouldn't happen to know how we wound up here, would you?"
Lily stared at the person that ran up to her. He was a tall male with black hair that was slicked back into a low sitting ponytail that flared out behind his back. He wore a purple jacket that was cut off at his midriff and was wide open, so his hard muscles were shown off to the world; around his neck was a necklace made of three large claws. He wore pants that were a deep orange color and red boots and gloves. "Wha? N-no… uhm… I was in a shipwreck."
"You were on that ship that sank, and then you woke up on this beach? So, why didn't you cark it too?" He walked around her, looking her over. He plucked the dark blue flying monster from her arms, holding onto him by the tail. "What's wrong with him?"
"I-I don't know. Please don't hurt him." Lily carefully took the monster back, feeling his shallow breaths against her palm. She pulled her shoulders in, trying to appear smaller as those narrowed red eyes watched her.
"What's your story?"
"My name is Lily… and I'm an apprentice builder. That ship… was holding me captive, but I helped them out, so they accepted me into their crew. But that was before the shipwreck… I couldn't save the ship… or Captain."
"Lily, huh? I've never heard of an apprentice builder before. Congratulations, I guess." The male shrugged and shoved his hands in his pockets, turning away from her. "My name's Malroth." He perked up some, smiling at her. "Hey, you want to see something really gruesome?! Follow me!" He took off, not waiting around for her to answer. When he noticed she wasn't right behind him, he turned on his toes, glaring up at her. "What's the matter? You're not squeamish, are you? Come on, you won't be disappointed!"
Lily gasped and trotted after Malroth, only to freeze when she splashed through the ankle-deep water when she finally caught up to him. Three humans lay in the water and several monsters were next to them, bits and pieces of the ship scattered around them. "Malroth…"
"Now that's what I call 'dead in the water'! Bet you've never seen anything like this before!" He turned to her, waving a hand at her while the other was perched on his hip. "Seems like you and me are the only survivors from the shipwreck. And maybe that monster there."
"Malroth… I don't remember seeing you on the ship…"
Malroth went still, dumbly blinking at her as he processed what she said. "What? You don't remember seeing me on board?"
"No…"
"But if I wasn't on your ship, then how did I–" Malroth glared at Lily when she threw a hand up, effectively silencing the dark-haired male. But then he heard what she must have silenced him to hear. A coughing noise. "What in the…"
A girl with pink hair shifted, rolling over from where she lay in the water. She coughed and sputtered as Malroth and Lily ran over, looking down at her. "She sounds like she's in pretty bad shape. We should do the right thing and put her out of her misery." Malroth gasped, grabbing his arm when Lily glared at him and punched him as hard as she could. "Hey."
"Mal! You can't just say that! We can help her." Lily kneeled next to the girl, carefully shaking her. "Hey, you're alright now."
The girl slowly moved her head, trying to pinpoint Lily's voice. She slowly opened her eyes, whimpering from a pain somewhere deep in her body. "Urgh… where… am I? How did I get here…?" Her eyes slowly opened, widening when they landed on Lily and Malroth. The girl let out a screech and pushed away from Lily, panting in fear. "You're p-p-p-pirates, aren't you?! Filthy, freebooting brigands who shall take me captive and demand a ransom for my safe return!"
"There's only one way to make sure she shuts up for good." Malroth hissed as Lily tried to calm the girl down. "Mind if I do the honors?"
"Malroth! Stop talking like that, you'll scare her!" The two watched as the girl got up and ran to hide in a rundown shack on the beach. "Huh… I didn't notice that hut before…"
"That girl has got some serious issues. What do you say we go and shut her up? …permanently?"
Lily glared at Malroth, faking a lunge at him. She smirked when the male next to her flinched back. With a 'humph', she stomped towards the hut. She slowly pushed the door open, seeing the girl huddled in the corner. "We aren't going to hurt you."
"Get away from me, you villains! If you're going to take me captive, at least tell me where we are and how I got here!"
Malroth growled as he pushed by Lily, making sure to corner the other girl. "Well, we're on an island with nothing but sand, rocks and a few corpses to keep us company. You must've washed up here with Lily when your ship sank."
The girl quit cowering for a moment, staring right at Lily. She narrowed her eyes as she tried to place where she knew the builder from. "Just a moment… I know you?" After a moment, Malroth and Lily could see the lightbulb go off in the girl's eyes. "Yes, I remember! You're that builder from the ship! The one who ran around grinning while those horrid monsters barked orders at you! You're in cahoots with them! This is all your fault!" She shot up, jabbing a finger at Lily. "Well!? What are you going to do about it?!"
Malroth started towards the girl, his lips pulled up in a loud snarl. He went to lash out at her when Lily grabbed the girls' hand with her own free hand. "I'm going to make us things to help us survive on this island until we can get help."
Malroth and the girl both looked at Lily, confusion in their eyes. "Wait… what?" Malroth gaped at her.
"Malroth can help me gather supplies and…" Lily stared at the girl; her lips pursed as she tried to remember if the girl had said her name before. "Uhm… I'm Lily…"
"Oh! I'm Lulu! What will we need to hold out until help arrives…?" Lulu put a finger to her lip as she thought about what they would need.
"I'll start gathering up pieces of the ship to patch up this hut for us to sleep in, out of the elements. Malroth, I saw some dry grass, if you'll go pull as much as you can, I can make us straw beds to sleep on tonight." Lily undid the ribbons in her hair and then easily tied her hair into a braid. She used her remaining ribbon and tied a small rock to the stick she had tied at her hip. She looked to Lulu, grinning. "Will you go gather scallywags? I'll make up a small fire to cook them on."
Lulu glared and pouted at Lily before letting out a 'humph' and walking away from Lily and Malroth. "I guess I'll do all of the hard work around here."
Malroth started to snap at the pink haired girl when Lily held up a hand, shaking her head with a small laugh. Malroth grumbled but started off to go find dead grass. "Talk back again and I'll show you how mighty these muscles are."
Lily couldn't help herself, she glanced over, her eyes locking on the muscles of Malroth's lower back as he stalked away from her. She felt her cheeks warm as she got up and pulled pieces of the ship from the sand and fixed up the hut.
Sometime later, Lulu let out a groan as she dropped the last scallywag in her apron. She threw a glance over her shoulder, seeing Malroth running around hitting a few slimes and gathering the oil that the little monsters used to move around. "I can't believe they're making me do all the hard work." Lulu hissed under her breath before she turned and stomped back towards their little sanctuary.
Malroth slowly followed Lulu, rolling his eyes. "I know I said out of her misery… but I think I really meant my misery." He scoffed and ran by the annoyed pink-haired girl. He came skidding to a halt when he saw Lily sitting next to fire, braiding dead grass that he had gathered earlier. "Lily! The hut looks really good!"
Lily turned her attention to Malroth and Lulu, her eyes wide at how many scallywags the other girl had grabbed. "Thanks!" She set the long braid of dead grass down on the ground and went to Lulu, taking the scallywags from the girl. "You didn't have to grab so many."
"I thought there would be more with how long it was taking you to gather them." Malroth put a hand on his hip and shrugged. He watched Lulu stick her tongue out at him and disappear into the hut. "That girl really gives me the hump! First, she won't stop whining, then she complains about helping out-" Malroth nearly jumped from his skin when he heard a loud scream from inside the hut.
The two outside bolted inside, Malroth had his fists at the ready, looking around frantically. "Lulu! What's wrong?! Is there a monster!?"
"N-No! There are beds! We have a place to rest our heads! Albeit… lumpy. But still better than the cold hard ground!" Lulu squealed and bounced around before clasping her hands in front of her chest and sighing. "I wonder what mama and papa would say to me rubbing shoulders with a builder and some weird guy on a deserted island…"
Malroth growled at Lulu and started to snap at her that he wasn't weird when a sad look crossed her bright eyes. "Ma and Pa got caught up in all the fighting and those maniac monsters murdered them in cold blood. I didn't know where else to go so I hid on the ship… only to end up with those same monsters."
Lily frowned, looking away from Lulu. Where the poor girl had had a bad experience with the monsters, Lily had had an okay experience with them. Had even become welcomed by them. She narrowed her eyes on the ground, determination swimming in those bright blue hues; she would build a world where humans and monsters alike could coincide. She turned away and slipped back outside, placing the scallywags near the burning fire. She jumped some when she heard a loud gasp behind her and suddenly Malroth's arms were around her torso, pulling her back.
"Careful, Lily! That stuff is hot!" Malroth stumbled, pulling Lily into his lap as they fell back. He took pause though when the smaller female started to giggle. "Wh… what's so funny?"
"It's just a fire, Mal. We have to cook our food somehow!" She turned in his lap and patted his cheek, grinning at him. "Here, I'll show you." Lily got up and grabbed his hand, pulling him back over to the fire.
Malroth sat next to her by the fire, watching her poke the scallywags and use a twig to flip them over. "Hey, Lily. I want to ask you something." When the girl looked up at him, he looked away, staring into the heart of the fire. "What does it mean to be a builder?"
"Hmm." Lily sat back; a finger pressed to her chin as she thought of how to explain it. "The easiest way to explain it… is that I use materials I find around me and create things. Or fix them. Before I ended up with the Captain on that ship, I had this awesome hammer that I made all by myself! But… I lost it when I was snagged up by the monsters." She leaned forward again, looking at his face. "Haven't you ever met a builder before?"
"They might be ten a penny where you come from, but I'm telling ya, I've never met a builder before. You're the first one I've ever met." He stopped, slowly looking at her. "Well, that I remember, anyways. I'll be sure to tell you all about my blissful, builder-free childhood when I get my memory back!"
"I can't wait. We'll work on getting your memory back, Mal." Lily grinned at him, not noticing the warmth that spread to his cheeks and tips of his ears.
"Well… until then, if you need help smashing, then I'm your man! I destroy pretty much everything I touch." Malroth beamed, jabbing a thumb to his chest.
The two of them nearly jumped out of their skins when the door to the hut slammed open and a drooling Lulu burst out. "That aroma! Is that what I think it is?! Are you cooking the scallywags?!" She scooped the cooked one away from the edge of the fire, a dark look in her eyes as she stared at the shell in her hands. "The scent of the seaside…" She pulled open the shell and slurped out the meat, a joyed noise leaving her. "The gravelly crunch of sand grains… it's simply irresistible!"
The look of pure disgust on Malroth's face had Lily laughing louder than she meant. "You're being sarcastic… right?" He gagged a little when Lulu threw her head back and slurped down the rest of the scallywag and reached for another. "You guys make for great partners, you know that?"
Now it was Malroth's turn to laugh louder than he meant to. "Oh, we're not partners. If you think a guy like me would really team up with a puny little runt like her, you're dreaming!"
Lulu shrugged and let out a yawn, stretching her arms over her head. "Speaking of dreams… I'm getting sleepy. Well, you two 'not partners' have fun out here, doing whatever it is that 'not partners' do."
Malroth waited until Lulu disappeared before he turned to Lily, seeing that she had quietly started working on the last bed. "Hey, Lily. Can I have a go at that building thing? I want to try my hand at it."
Lily gave a little nod and handed over her makeshift rock and stick hammer. Malroth eagerly took it and went over to the makeshift bench Lily had pieced together using parts of the ship. He pulled dry grass out of his pocket, throwing it onto the table and then grabbed some wood and threw it up there as well. "I've been watching you all day; it looks pretty easy to make shit. Watch this, Lily! I'm going to be a builder, just like you!"
Lily turned around and watched him as she idly braided dry grass into a simple bed. She couldn't help but smile each time he threw a broken piece of wood out into the water or a ripped piece of dried grass to the side. She stayed where she was as he yelled at the tools of her trade, frustration in his shouts. A sympathetic smile on her lips when he turned to her. "Any luck?"
"This shit is harder than I thought! Sorry, Lil. I'll be relying on you to build things from here on out."
Lily tied off the braid, looking over the makeshift bed before getting up. She snatched up a larger log and went to her bench, grabbing another tool she fancied up. She started whittling away at the log. Malroth walked around her, looking over her shoulders as she worked. He gasped and jumped back when Lily whirled around on him, holding out a giant club like object. "What would I want with a silly old stick?"
"It's not a stick, silly. It's a club, to make it easier for you to smash stuff. Give it a few swings."
Malroth carefully took the club from Lily, eyeing her suspiciously before stepping away and swinging the club around. His red eyes widened, and he grinned from ear to ear as he moved around. "Hey! This thing has a good weight to it! I like this- No! I love this thing!" He growled and slammed the club against the ground, watching sand fly around him. "Ha-ha! This thing is great!"
Lily crossed her arms and smiled at him; glad he was enjoying himself. She started to say something when he stood up straight and held a hand up. "Lily, do you feel that?" He spun in a circle, as if he was trying to pinpoint a smell or a sound, but Lily didn't see or hear anything. "It feels evil, whatever it is." He growled and took off down the beach.
"Mal!" Lily gasped and took off after him, barely able to keep up with his longer legs; soon she had lost sight of him all together. Though, she started to round the edge of a cliff face when she heard him grunting and shouting. When she stepped around, she saw him swinging his new club at some rats that were almost as big as she was. "Mal!" She pulled out her ill made hammer and swung at a rat that had its' back to her.
Malroth dodged around the swipes of a large rat, clobbering it in the head with his club as he jumped to the side. The club connected with a sickening thud and the rat went limp in front of him. He started to celebrate when he saw Lily fighting off a smaller rat, he ran over, whacking the little beast with his club.
Lily jumped back, watching this rat fall to the ground as well. "Mal! You did it!" She threw her hand up, laughing joyously at their victory.
Malroth looked up at her hand, grinning as he rushed her, smacking his hand against hers. He froze there though, a confused look coming to his face. "What was that? Was I supposed to do that?"
"Yeah! That was a high five! Have you never done that before?"
"What? No."
Lily crossed her arms behind her back and smiled as she bounced on her toes. "We can do high fives after victories like that to celebrate!" Her smile grew when Malroth just stared at his hand in complete confusion before shrugging and leaving the small cave they were in. "Come on, let's go back and get some rest, I want to explore this place tomorrow and I don't want to be tired while I'm out and about!"
Malroth looked up when Lily turned and skipped happily away, her braid bouncing against her back as she moved. "Lily! Wait up!" He ran up next to her, his hands shoved in his pockets. "I'm glad I met you, Lily. Can I join you when you go exploring? Just… me and you?"
Lily paused, blinking in surprise at Malroth before she gave him a warm smile. "Only if you'll be my partner."
Malroth stared at her in total shock, his lightly tanned skin slowly turned red before he quickly turned away. "Yeah, well. You gotta have someone to protect you while you build stuff." He grumbled to himself as he walked away from her, leading the way back to their safe haven.
