Altair had to jump to reach the closest branch on the next tree over. Even then, she was required to throw her arms out in order to catch herself. If she had access to her Mana, it would be a much simpler task to cross from tree to tree with her body enhanced by Magic. It only fueled her desire to find what she needed as her arms screamed in pain while catching herself.
She pulled herself up with shaky arms and sat on the branch, her breathing ragged. She frowned at state her body was in. She then shook her head in self mockery as she realized she had been overly spoiled.
She had always burned some Mana to use Body Reinforcement Magic whenever she felt even the slightest bit tired. While she could still do it now, she would quickly run out of Mana. Since she was in an unknown forested area, where she could hear the strange calls of bizarre creatures she had yet to see, that meant there was probably predators that feasted on the more docile beasts nearby. If she ran into them without any Mana, with the strength of her child body, she would probably end up in their belly.
After she caught her breath and felt some strength return to her arms, she stood up carefully on the branch and made her way to the next tree.
She repeated the process of jumping from branch to branch and moved deeper into the forest without seeing anything of not while she traveled. She would occasionally stop to rest on the branches, not willing to go back down to the ground because the hook grass continued to cover everything she saw. There was also the threat of while creatures that she had also yet to see any sign of. Then again, the hook grass didn't leave any path that she noticed after she passed through it herself, so perhaps that was just how things were here.
As she was leaning against the trunk of a tree and resting her arms, she heard a deep, husky roar from nearby. It echoed so loudly in the area that Altair was forced to cover her ears. The roar seemed to also shake the tree she was on lightly, as the leaves around her shook in time with the sound.
The roar abruptly cut off with a whine.
Altair pulled her hands from her ears and looked around warily, but she could not find the source of it. She did, however, hear the sounds of two creatures fighting each other. It sounded strange though, like someone was punching water.
Altair stood up and started moving to a branch she thought was closer to the source of fight. If she could see what kind of creatures were in the area then that would be very beneficial for her to stay out of harms way. She could also see how they fought and if they had any sneaky attacks, like a breath attack or hidden poison. That could potentially save her life if she encountered them herself.
She maneuvered around tree after tree towards the sounds.
As she rounded one tree, from one branch of the same tree onto another, she saw a tree in the distance get slammed into and it bent down at what should have been an impossible angle. It revealed the fight on the other side of it between two giant creatures.
The creature closer to Altair stood on six long, sectional legs that were as thick as a man's head. The legs led up to its main body, which resembled a green bubble of water. In the bubble was a strange, darker color in the center of it, and it had a pointed protuberance at the front of it. Its attention seemed focused on its giant opponent before itself.
The opponent was very similar to giants that Altair was familiar with. It had a humanoid shape and grey colored skin. It's entire body seemed to be extra bulky with bulging muscles all over it. It had arms thicker than tree trunks and four fingers on each hand. However, it had no head. Instead, where the shoulders bulk was down to the center of its stomach, was a vertical mouth that seemed to be trying to chomp at the other creature voraciously, spewing forth its saliva without a care.
The bulky brute swung a meaty hook at the bubble thing. It hit the top of the creature and caused it to oscillate and bend backwards awkwardly. The legs of the bubble thing didn't seem to be bothered by this odd movement.
Altair looked on with an interested expression at the two bizarre creatures. They were both very strange to her. The bubble thing closely resembled insects she remembered but she couldn't figure out how it could have grown to the size it was. The legs looked very flimsy and it was obviously on the losing end of its fight with the bulky brute. It didn't even seem to be defending itself well as it was just taking heavy blow after heavy blow, its body getting shoved and swaying with every impact it received.
She wondered if it was a territory dispute between the two of them. Since most herbivore creatures she had seen would flee from predators and the bubble thing didn't seem to intend to run she assumed that they were both predators. If that was the case, then the only reason they would be fighting each other was because one of them intruded on the others territory.
Altair didn't feel either of them were excessively dangerous creatures. Her instincts were telling her that, although they were large they weren't impressive. So she wasn't being very cautious or trying to hide herself from them. Besides, they were clearly busy with each other. Why would they turn their attention to her, a small creature that obviously wasn't as threatening as the beast that was attacking it?
The bubble thing received another heavy blow and took a couple of steps back, closer to Altair's position. It swayed briefly before straightening back.
Altair didn't move from her spot and instead lounged back against the trunk. She found the way the insides of that creatures head turned over itself was fascinating. She wondered exactly what it was made up of and if it was edible.
While the rest of the bubble thing didn't look appetizing, the green of its top reminded Altair of some of the vegetables she had eaten before. Since she had lived a long time hunting her own food, she couldn't help but wonder if it could add flavor to what she had eaten before. She had already figured that the bulky brute would probably be edible. Its muscles would most likely taste delicious too. If she combined the insides of the bubble thing with the meaty muscles of the bulky brute, wouldn't they taste great together…?
The bubble thing emitted a high pitched screech that surprised Altair and the bulky brute. It was the first sound it had made the entire time and Altair wondered if it had received a heavy injury, since she couldn't tell one way or another what its condition was like.
The bulky brute seemed to shrink back slightly at the sound but it quickly recovered and roared in fury at it. It then winded back its arm and threw another heavy hit at the bubble thing.
The bubble thing took the hit and swayed backwards; lifting its two front legs up menacingly like it was trying to increase its size to intimidate the bulky brute. There was just one problem that idea though. The bulky brute had no eyes so it obviously couldn't see what it was doing.
The bubble thing stabilized in place and the bulky brute brought its arm back for another attack.
Before the brute could launch its attack though, the bubble thing dropped both of its legs into the shoulders of the brute, piercing through most of its torso and coming out of its lower back. The legs then slammed into the ground behind the brute, effectively pinning its movement in place. The brute's blue blood oozed down from the wounds it had and it gave out a ferocious warning roar that nobody would have taken seriously considering its condition.
The bubble thing pulled its top away from the bulky brute then dove forward quickly in response to its roar. As it did so, it sprayed a green liquid out from its protuberance all over the bulky brute's body and into its mouth.
Once the liquid landed on it, the bulky brute started to shake violently, a quiet sizzling sound coming from it, and it gave out a gurgled roar of agony. The roar quickly turned into a death wail as its legs gave out but it did not fall as it was held in place by the bubble thing.
The bubble thing slowly pulled its legs out of the corpse and let it fall back gently onto the ground. Such care was very bizarre for a predator that just killed another predator, but Altair was more interested in exactly what that green substance was doing to the bulky brute's body.
Once the body was laid flat, the bubble thing spread out its legs to lower itself down and spewed more of the green liquid over it, covering its whole body in the strange substance. It then took the two front legs of itself and stuck them into the brute's body, tearing away at its corpse and bringing it to its protuberance. It was at this point that Altair figured the protuberance was a head.
Altair watched in interest until a foul, putrid stench assaulted her nose. It caused her eyes to narrow at the bubble thing. The stench was hot, humid, and vomit inducing. Altair gagged briefly and decided that she might as well leave now, before she was discovered.
She stood up and moved down to the other branch she had climbed up from as stealthily as she could manage.
She didn't make any sound when she alighted herself on it. She cast a glance over her shoulder and went to sight in relief. However, she gagged loudly instead.
The sound caused the bubble thing to make a strange, rolling cry like a bird and turn its bubble form toward Altair without moving its legs.
Staring at the creature that was now staring at Altair caused her hair to stand on end.
Altair had to jump to reach the closest branch on the next tree over. Even then, she was required to throw her arms out in order to catch herself. If she had access to her Mana, it would be a much simpler task to cross from tree to tree with her body enhanced by Magic. It only fueled her desire to find what she needed as her arms screamed in pain while catching herself.
She pulled herself up with shaky arms and sat on the branch, her breathing ragged. She frowned at state her body was in. She then shook her head in self mockery as she realized she had been overly spoiled.
She had always burned some Mana to use Body Reinforcement Magic whenever she felt even the slightest bit tired. While she could still do it now, she would quickly run out of Mana. Since she was in an unknown forested area, where she could hear the strange calls of bizarre creatures she had yet to see, that meant there was probably predators that feasted on the more docile beasts nearby. If she ran into them without any Mana, with the strength of her child body, she would probably end up in their belly.
After she caught her breath and felt some strength return to her arms, she stood up carefully on the branch and made her way to the next tree.
She repeated the process of jumping from branch to branch and moved deeper into the forest without seeing anything of not while she traveled. She would occasionally stop to rest on the branches, not willing to go back down to the ground because the hook grass continued to cover everything she saw. There was also the threat of while creatures that she had also yet to see any sign of. Then again, the hook grass didn't leave any path that she noticed after she passed through it herself, so perhaps that was just how things were here.
As she was leaning against the trunk of a tree and resting her arms, she heard a deep, husky roar from nearby. It echoed so loudly in the area that Altair was forced to cover her ears. The roar seemed to also shake the tree she was on lightly, as the leaves around her shook in time with the sound.
The roar abruptly cut off with a whine.
Altair pulled her hands from her ears and looked around warily, but she could not find the source of it. She did, however, hear the sounds of two creatures fighting each other. It sounded strange though, like someone was punching water.
Altair stood up and started moving to a branch she thought was closer to the source of fight. If she could see what kind of creatures were in the area then that would be very beneficial for her to stay out of harms way. She could also see how they fought and if they had any sneaky attacks, like a breath attack or hidden poison. That could potentially save her life if she encountered them herself.
She maneuvered around tree after tree towards the sounds.
As she rounded one tree, from one branch of the same tree onto another, she saw a tree in the distance get slammed into and it bent down at what should have been an impossible angle. It revealed the fight on the other side of it between two giant creatures.
The creature closer to Altair stood on six long, sectional legs that were as thick as a man's head. The legs led up to its main body, which resembled a green bubble of water. In the bubble was a strange, darker color in the center of it, and it had a pointed protuberance at the front of it. Its attention seemed focused on its giant opponent before itself.
The opponent was very similar to giants that Altair was familiar with. It had a humanoid shape and grey colored skin. It's entire body seemed to be extra bulky with bulging muscles all over it. It had arms thicker than tree trunks and four fingers on each hand. However, it had no head. Instead, where the shoulders bulk was down to the center of its stomach, was a vertical mouth that seemed to be trying to chomp at the other creature voraciously, spewing forth its saliva without a care.
The bulky brute swung a meaty hook at the bubble thing. It hit the top of the creature and caused it to oscillate and bend backwards awkwardly. The legs of the bubble thing didn't seem to be bothered by this odd movement.
Altair looked on with an interested expression at the two bizarre creatures. They were both very strange to her. The bubble thing closely resembled insects she remembered but she couldn't figure out how it could have grown to the size it was. The legs looked very flimsy and it was obviously on the losing end of its fight with the bulky brute. It didn't even seem to be defending itself well as it was just taking heavy blow after heavy blow, its body getting shoved and swaying with every impact it received.
She wondered if it was a territory dispute between the two of them. Since most herbivore creatures she had seen would flee from predators and the bubble thing didn't seem to intend to run she assumed that they were both predators. If that was the case, then the only reason they would be fighting each other was because one of them intruded on the others territory.
Altair didn't feel either of them were excessively dangerous creatures. Her instincts were telling her that, although they were large they weren't impressive. So she wasn't being very cautious or trying to hide herself from them. Besides, they were clearly busy with each other. Why would they turn their attention to her, a small creature that obviously wasn't as threatening as the beast that was attacking it?
The bubble thing received another heavy blow and took a couple of steps back, closer to Altair's position. It swayed briefly before straightening back.
Altair didn't move from her spot and instead lounged back against the trunk. She found the way the insides of that creatures head turned over itself was fascinating. She wondered exactly what it was made up of and if it was edible.
While the rest of the bubble thing didn't look appetizing, the green of its top reminded Altair of some of the vegetables she had eaten before. Since she had lived a long time hunting her own food, she couldn't help but wonder if it could add flavor to what she had eaten before. She had already figured that the bulky brute would probably be edible. Its muscles would most likely taste delicious too. If she combined the insides of the bubble thing with the meaty muscles of the bulky brute, wouldn't they taste great together…?
The bubble thing emitted a high pitched screech that surprised Altair and the bulky brute. It was the first sound it had made the entire time and Altair wondered if it had received a heavy injury, since she couldn't tell one way or another what its condition was like.
The bulky brute seemed to shrink back slightly at the sound but it quickly recovered and roared in fury at it. It then winded back its arm and threw another heavy hit at the bubble thing.
The bubble thing took the hit and swayed backwards; lifting its two front legs up menacingly like it was trying to increase its size to intimidate the bulky brute. There was just one problem that idea though. The bulky brute had no eyes so it obviously couldn't see what it was doing.
The bubble thing stabilized in place and the bulky brute brought its arm back for another attack.
Before the brute could launch its attack though, the bubble thing dropped both of its legs into the shoulders of the brute, piercing through most of its torso and coming out of its lower back. The legs then slammed into the ground behind the brute, effectively pinning its movement in place. The brute's blue blood oozed down from the wounds it had and it gave out a ferocious warning roar that nobody would have taken seriously considering its condition.
The bubble thing pulled its top away from the bulky brute then dove forward quickly in response to its roar. As it did so, it sprayed a green liquid out from its protuberance all over the bulky brute's body and into its mouth.
Once the liquid landed on it, the bulky brute started to shake violently, a quiet sizzling sound coming from it, and it gave out a gurgled roar of agony. The roar quickly turned into a death wail as its legs gave out but it did not fall as it was held in place by the bubble thing.
The bubble thing slowly pulled its legs out of the corpse and let it fall back gently onto the ground. Such care was very bizarre for a predator that just killed another predator, but Altair was more interested in exactly what that green substance was doing to the bulky brute's body.
Once the body was laid flat, the bubble thing spread out its legs to lower itself down and spewed more of the green liquid over it, covering its whole body in the strange substance. It then took the two front legs of itself and stuck them into the brute's body, tearing away at its corpse and bringing it to its protuberance. It was at this point that Altair figured the protuberance was a head.
Altair watched in interest until a foul, putrid stench assaulted her nose. It caused her eyes to narrow at the bubble thing. The stench was hot, humid, and vomit inducing. Altair gagged briefly and decided that she might as well leave now, before she was discovered.
She stood up and moved down to the other branch she had climbed up from as stealthily as she could manage.
She didn't make any sound when she alighted herself on it. She cast a glance over her shoulder and went to sight in relief. However, she gagged loudly instead.
The sound caused the bubble thing to make a strange, rolling cry like a bird and turn its bubble form toward Altair without moving its legs.
Staring at the creature that was now staring at Altair caused her hair to stand on end.
