Chapter Text
The mountains had remained visible in the woods for most of the day, but by the time the sun reached its midday resting point, the scouting team had gone so deep into the forest that Keith needed to look straight up to even catch a glimpse of the sky. The space between trees was overgrown with chest high bushes that were eternally wet with dew, hidden from the sun beneath the shade of the increasingly dense forest. Merely walking forward was an arduous task, and while the ground was mercifully flat, the scattered roots, rocks, and stumps were still an ever present obstacle. The sharp cold sting of the visibly damp foliage was contrasted by the day’s noticeably increasing humidity, but Keith found himself smiling. He loved the feeling of the damp, and the bite of thorns into his hands as he pushed bush after bush out of his way. It reminded him of his more conventional assignments, and the men he had worked with therein.
A strange sense of deja vu came over him, no doubt still lingering from his dreams the night prior. He didn’t remember any of the finer details, but he knew the dreams had been very vivid, and that they had taken place in several of the more dense jungles he had fought through. Parachuting in, navigating the nearly impassable terrain, and remaining totally invisible for days before launching savage attacks against all manners of hostile groups. Those assignments had always given him a rush, as more often than not the fighting would take place so close that having time to aim was a luxury. Unfortunately, the damn bird had been in the dream as well, and had spoiled all the fun with how much she had been screaming. Regardless of having an otherwise good dream ruined by his present concerns seeping in, he needed to focus on the day’s task, which in this case was navigating towards an undiscovered village while not being able to see further than ten feet in any direction.
He had started the day at a casual pace, but as the other members of the team found the environment nearly intraversable, Keith slowed down to maintain pace with them. While the blind navigation was enjoyable, he was beginning to find it hard to reminisce in his days of sneaking through this sort of terrain when the rest of his team was making more noise than a mortar barrage. He paused for a moment, leaning on a tree as he turned around to face his colleagues and finding things to be just as he suspected. Nakree was faring well with her height, and her ability to duck, while Kizzkit’s antlers kept catching on branches, eliciting frustrated buzzing every few moments. Natasha was more than happy to make use of the path Keith and Nakree were carving, but was still moving slowly while Nissu desperately tried not to lose track of her in the brush that reached well above his head.
“Is all well?”
Keith didn’t bother looking at the source of the sing-songy voice, and instead took a moment to check his compass. “Just letting the others catch up.”
“A sound decision!” Chirped the enchantress.
Keith furrowed his brow at the remark, but maintained his focus on the compass. Nakree had been acting friendly today despite how the previous night had ended. What was more, she had a very noticeable look of smug superiority on her face, and it had only grown stronger when he assigned her to point duty with him. If it had been subtle, and she had maintained the same demeanor she had held for the previous few two days, then Keith probably would have just ignored it. As it was however, she was acting like she knew something he didn’t, and it was very much concerning him. He had been debating whether the correct approach was to be polite to her in the hopes of smoothing over whatever sudden scheme had been cooked up, or being rude and hoping that she simply distanced herself from him. Before he could reach a decision however, the bird perked up, and pointed to something up ahead.
“I see magic among the trees.” Said Nakree. “There has been weaving done nearby.”
Keith quickly pocketed his compass, and unslung his rifle. “Point it out. Where’s our target?”
“Don’t shoot you fool!” Squawked Nakree sharply, but when Keith turned to face her, her expression of frustration softened immediately, and her words became friendly and eager. “It is not the same magic as was woven into the beast. There is a tree of ritual nearby, and our path shall reach it soon.”
If someone he knew had changed expressions and tone that quickly, he would have assumed it to be a joke. There was simply no fathomable way that someone could be so bad at acting, or emotionally unstable, that they shifted expression with that level of abruptness. Even now as he made this realization, a look of nervousness crept onto Nakree’s avian visage while she doubtlessly saw that he was becoming suspicious. With a sigh, he gestured to the woods ahead.
“Lead us to it. We can mark it on the map, and get our bearings.” He said. “I'm gonna fall to the back for a moment to check in on everyone.”
“Of course, dear leader.” Nakree replied.
The giddiness that Nakree attached to her reply made him wince, and he watched her in barely disguised disgust as she lumbered through the brush ahead. He stood there for a moment, waving the two exhausted bipedal blue agents past, before Kizzkit caught up, and he began to walk again.
“How are you holding up, blue?” Asked Keith, looking up at the deerbugs’s antlers which now possessed a good deal of botanical decoration.
“I would prefer a less cramped environment, but otherwise I am doing well.” Buzzed Kizzkit. “You seem surprisingly apt in this sort of terrain.”
Keith shrugged. “I've been through thicker brush than this. Listen, I need to ask you something about chit behavior.”
Kizzkit looked at him curiously, and began to wipe the growing layer of cobwebs and leaves off of her antlers. “Is Nakree doing something unusual? I should remind you that her psychology is quite foreign to all of ours, and that is taking into consideration that among our team, we already possess considerably varied evolutionary psychologies. Any oddities should be given more leeway than you would grant a fellow human.”
“Actually, she's doing something that I've seen humans do, just very poorly.” He sighed, earning a curious look from the deerbug. “Last night she was upset again because I didn't let her use her magic. Now she's acting weird. She looked smug as hell about something this morning, and now she's trying to be all nice. She even stops herself when she gets angry and tries to sound more polite.”
“And this bothers you?”
“Oh yeah it does.” He replied grimly. “It's bullshit. I don't need the brain link to see that she's up to something. No one saw her leave camp last night, but I'm worried she's buttering me up to lead us into a trap. Maybe she had some sort of psychic conversation with that cunt who sent his alligator to kill us, and he convinced her to turn on us.”
An amused buzz emanated from Kizzkit, and she began to gesticulate as she spoke. “I find it unlikely that any local, enchanter or otherwise, could offer more than what you originally said you would pay Nakree. Furthermore, I find it more unlikely that she would try to have you killed while she believes that your demise would cause her brain to explode.”
“Then why do you think she's doing it? I'm pretty sure the literal hermit isn't going to suddenly try to be diplomatic, especially considering that we've known her for… what, three days? She’s been pissy most of the time, so I don’t trust this at all.”
Kizzkit looked thoughtful for a moment, then suddenly began to vibrate in another bout of amusement. “Chits value personal capability, with hunting being an especially cherished virtue.”
“So?”
“When she first met us in the convoy, she believed we were malicious on account of the red agent’s enthusiasm with his firearm. From what we know of them culturally, they see working together as a sign of weakness.”
“What, so now that we've offered her payment, and there's less of us, she wants to be on better terms? That still doesn’t explain the sudden change.”
“Ignoring your attempts to ascribe hard logic to emotion, I believe the answer is slightly more entertaining, if your observations are accurate.” Said Kizzkit. “At her cabin, you offered her wealth that would take her years to accrue for what to her must seem to be no work at all. Yesterday, you saved her life from an enormous carnivore, and were even able to kill it despite its unusual characteristics.”
“That was a team effort.” Said Keith. “Besides, you did all the heavy lifting.”
“That may be so.” Kizzkit replied. “But to a chit like Nakree, she would see us as all acting individually, and sharing identical merit. You must remember that she barely understands what a team is. It isn't stupidity, it just simply isn't compatible with how her people evolved psychologically.”
“Where are you going with this?” Asked Keith.
“Oh, come now! Is it not obvious?”
Keith just glared at Kizzkit with his best unamused stare, but the silence only seemed to entertain her more.
“Very well, I will spell it out for you. Chit courtship is very similar to Skiv courtship. While skivs don't display much attraction to a mate initially, they will suddenly begin showing extreme interest once a prospective mate gives them a verbal or otherwise obvious signal that they are romantically attracted.” Explained the deerbug.
Keith winced at the word ‘courtship’, and slowly raised his hands to his face. “No…”
“While skivs developed this behavior as a way to promote intellectual evolution, chits will behave similarly for a different reason. From what little we've seen, they tend to act quite apathetic towards most people, even those who they are in good standing with, then suddenly they become uncharacteristically friendly towards someone they see as a potential mate once that person displays characteristics beneficial to raising a healthy family.” She continued. “It may be true that chits are very averse to forming bonds, but you have offered her considerable payment, displayed what to her seems to be extraordinary fighting prowess, and your safety is, in her mind, necessary for her wellbeing. Keith, I believe this native has taken a special interest in you.”
“...Kizzkit?”
“Yes?”
“This conversation never happened.” Keith groaned.
“I understand.” She replied with her odd chitinous version of a laugh. “I should add that she likely will not act in any manner you expect from more sociable species unless you reciprocate the sentiment. Expect her to see your actions as a business transaction, and your safety as something to protect as if you were property.”
All Keith could muster in reply was dismayed muttering, and a newfound hatred of the word ‘reciprocate’ as the explanation sank in. He was well equipped to deal with all sorts of problems. He had experienced ambushes, hostile pursuers, and overwhelming odds. He knew just what to do to track down a fleeing enemy, to pass seemingly impassable terrain, and to utilize a squad to its fullest potential. Experience, practice, speculation, and equipment choice had given him an edge over any and all obstacles he had ever faced. Even in the social sphere, he was no stranger to incompetent superiors, insane and retarded subordinates, and even the odd encounter with a deranged woman in his life. Now, for the first time in a long while, a new problem arose. It wasn't all bad, he supposed, as it meant that a new avenue of opportunity had opened.
He would need to be a bit more polite, and maybe a little more dishonest than he would like to be with a team member, but otherwise it seemed like a viable option for making her cooperate. Just asking her outright was out of the question, and not just because Nissu would never let him live it down if it was the truth. He would let her use her magic a bit more leniently, and let her wander a few yards further, if it meant she put up less of a fuss. It was simple enough to work, and the mission ahead would be much easier if the bird was happier.
All he had to do was make sure that she didn't get too overt with her apparent flattery, or get angry at his lack of ‘reciprocation’. Remembering a very important saying about what sort of people hell hath no fury like, he made his way forward to check in on the others, and to see just what it was that Nakree had spotted.
-
It was amazing how true her suspicion had been. The moment the day had begun, Keith had acted as predictably, as he had blatantly. As the team had sat around the still warm ashes of the prior night's fire, the intertwined man had begun to command his companions on the order in which they would walk. Nakree had barely contained her amusement as Keith had told her that she would be walking beside him. He had told her that she would be up front to more easily see any magical weaving, and to an extent she could see in his mind that he considered this to be true, but his poor attempt at trickery wasn't fooling her. Perhaps he was trying to fool himself about his own desires, or perhaps he understood how to discipline his thoughts well enough to hide certain things from her. In truth, it did not matter. The human had, for a rather odd reason, become interested in her as much more than a hireling, and now the fool would be played with the same ease and skill that she used to play her guitar.
She shuddered as cool air rushed over her, and shook as much water from her feathers as she could. Not long after Keith had dropped back to talk with the others, Nakree had found the edge of the dense brush, and burst through into a small clearing that surrounded an ancient tree. This tree held all the familiar trappings of any tree of ritual that could be found in the world. Dangling strings affixed to hundreds of small bones hung like a forest of fishing lines, while tiny burn marks dotted every inch of the base of the tree from uncountable lightings of quick match. Even the area around the tree bore the trampled ring of a well trodden path going in a perfect circle around its ancient branches, and a single worn dirt path leading off into the forest in the direction that the trees grew thinner. She waited here for the others, glad to finally be out of the bushes that made walking tenfold more difficult. The brush also strangely reminded her of the dreams she had the night prior, involving blood, an endless roar of firelocks, and the cackling laughter of unseen figures in the trees, with the intertwined man commanding the ghostly specters to do his bidding.
She shook the fuzzy memory from her head, and in the same motion shook the wetness from her plumage. So much dampness flew from her feathers that she could have filled a water skin with it, and as the travelers emerged one by one, they each did very much the same.
“Finally, freedom!” Sighed Natasha, wringing the water from her odd blue clothes.
“Ahead of schedule too.” Agreed Keith, emerging alongside the human woman. “The map made it look like that dense patch goes on for way longer.”
“The village should not be too far. Unless this is a different tree of ritual, we should reach it before the sun has a chance to move any further.” Said Nakree, gesturing to the dirt path. “It is this way.”
Keith cocked an eyebrow, and looked back down at the small circular tool in his hand. A wave of concern pulsed from the man as his eyes lingered on his tool. “...Nissu, can you get us a bearing from the convoy real quick?”
The reptile looked up from his angry cloth wringing, and snickered. “We’re lost, ain’t we?”
“I hope not. The map makes it look like theres a big fuckin clearing ahead near the base of a mountain, but apparently there should be a village.” Nakree felt the man’s confusion, and watched as he shrugged, before turning to her. “Are you sure you're seeing the right landmarks?”
“I can feel my thread leading us there, and even if I had not woven us a true path, I have been to this very tree many times before. My brother was the one to discover it, and he lives in the village ahead.” She replied, stomping a foot and looking up to a mountain peak which was barely visible ahead through the trees. “The village is at the base of the mountain beyond this forest, and it sits near a small river. We may be able to offer goods to the people here in exchange for their knowledge.”
As she spoke, the small reptile removed something from a pouch on his tail, and began to hold it above his head. A few seconds of waving the object around elicited a hiss, and he handed the device to Keith.
“Compare that to the map. We’re near a river at the base of that mountain up ahead, just like the bird bitch said.” Grumbled Nissu. “I’m not seeing any village though.”
Keith looked back and forth between his tools, and the tool that the lizard had handed him. Nakree looked on in interest, and watched as the man’s mind began to work. Numbers and directions that she did not understand flew by, and as she looked at one of the tools the man held, she saw him drawing lines, and shaking his head repeatedly. Eventually, he threw up his hands, and handed the tool back to the reptile.
“Yeah, Nakree, I don’t think we are where you say we are.” He said, giving her an almost sympathetic look. She could feel his mind brimming with frustration as he believed her to be wrong, but there also was an easily noticed effort to temper that frustration to curry favor from her. How predictable. “Look… Here we are on the map. There’s no village ahead, and there's a huge clearing barely a hundred yards away.”
He held up the flat tool for her to see, and to her surprise, there was a remarkably detailed image of the land nearby. It looked as though someone had drawn what they saw from memory after flying from heights far above the mountains. Keith had mentioned fake wings called ‘paragliders’ to her before, but could the wings of these travelers truly lift them to the height of clouds? If they could fly, why did they make this journey on foot? The more she learned of these people, the more she wished to see what their home was like. No doubt, it was a strange, strange land.
However, something was wrong with the drawing. She had flown from the peak of the nearby mountain many times, and she knew well the many curves of the river and forest. Despite the otherwise familiar sight on the odd tool, there indeed was an empty clearing at the base of the mountain right where the village should have been. She tilted her head in confusion. Had whatever artist that drew this picture forgotten to draw the village? Clearly he had not merely left it out, as there was detail to the earth where it should have been. She had been here many times, both to trade goods with the locals, and knowledge with her brother. Clearly, the travelers were mistaken.
“You are wrong.” She said simply. It was hard not to taunt their ignorance, but such insults would not lead to a wealthier life. “I am not sure who you trusted to draw this image, but they have made a rather terrible mistake.”
“It's not a…” Keith began, before pausing and making that odd flat handed gesture he used whenever he was speaking while frustrated. “Whatever. Listen, Nakree, this ‘drawing’ is more accurate than your memory.”
She reeled at the man’s words, and felt her chest feathers puffing out. How dare he say that? Even though it angered her, she at least understood the man’s ignorant fear of her magic. To question her very mind however… She wanted very much to strike the man with a song of some sort, but held herself back. It seemed that the man recognized that he had enraged her, and was trying to think of something to remedy his words.
“...Now, that isn’t to say that you have a bad memory, just that I think you’re making a mistake.” He said in shallow apology.
“I am aware of your meaning.” Replied Nakree with a snap of her beak. “Even after your lack of trust in my magics, I am shocked that you would not trust my given word. The village is close, and I will show that I can be trusted more than whatever craftsman made the tools you use to find your way.”
“Nakree, it doesn’t…” Began Keith, trailing off as he struggled for words.
“Nah, take her up on it!” Grinned Nissu. “Let's go see who’s right. Kizzkit, Natasha, place your bets on who’s more retarded! Our navigator, or our guide? Loser takes two shift’s on watch.”
“Are you not placing your own bet?” Buzzed Kizzkit.
“Hell no, but it was my idea, so the loser take’s my watch shift.” Replied the lizard. “Besides, the direction finder said that we’re right where he says we are.”
“As detestable as I find that miniscule creature, he is right that we should continue onward to see who is more trustworthy.” Nakree said with a nod to Nissu, which the reptile responded to with an obscene gesture.
Keith responded by rolling his eyes before waving the group forward. As Nakree walked onward behind him, she paid close attention to the man’s mind. She saw his annoyance as they began to walk on the dirt path, and she saw his anticipation as the dense trees began to clear out. It was a true exercise in will to refrain from breaking out in laughter as she felt his astonishment once the trees cleared. She did so anyway.
The dense greenery parted as if they had stepped through a doorway, leaving them standing under the thin shade of a sparse scattering of saplings. Just as the impenetrable forest cleared, the layer of shrubs and moss blanketing the ground gave way to trampled golden grass surrounding well traveled dirt paths, and an assortment of homes. Some houses were made of stone, built by skilled hands using methods of construction kept secret by the families that resided within them. Other houses were built of the readily available logs from the forest, but still had stone chimneys sprouting from the center of their earthen roofs. Regardless of the material used to build a home, it was clear that each new shelter was built in a bid to grab up what land could be taken in the clearing. After all, not a hundred fathoms away was the beginning of the mountain slope. There were several homes dotting the mountainside as well on the more shallow slopes, but those villagers were unlucky. After all, it would be easier to climb a mountain empty handed in the morning for a flying hunt or leisurely glide, but to haul one’s prey back up the slope every day would be a terribly inconvenient ordeal.
Back in the town, chits walked through the town down the wide streets of packed earth, keeping sizable berths from one another, and occasionally ushering younglings along to one chore or another. Somewhere, a loud conversation was happening, as echoing squawks and shrill shrieks were audible in the distance. When last she had been here, there were perhaps twenty households. Now there were nearly fifty, with young and handsome males tending to the property. This village was wealthier than the one which she resided near, but she could see that after this recent wave of new homes, the clearing was running out of space. What was more interesting was the impressive weaving of magic in the air around the village. Had more enchanters been raised here than she knew of?
“What the…”
Nakree turned to face Keith, watching as the man rapidly looked between his drawing and the village, and relishing in the satisfaction of being right. With such a folly being made by whoever had flown over this place on their fake wings, the man would have no choice but to trust her going forward. She opened her beak to gloat, but before she could utter a word, the intertwined man erupted into action, emanating a panicked emotion identical to when the mountain lizard had attacked.
“Alright, Natasha! Whip out your gear! Nissu, try taking a picture with some of your equipment.” Barked the man, not wasting a moment as his exhausted companions began to take off their packs and fish out their strange tools. He turned to face her, and sighed. “Nakree… Do you see anything weird around here? Any of your magic or something?”
“Really?” She snorted in reply. “Not even an apology for questioning my mind? No reminiscence on your mistake?”
Keith’s demeanor faltered for a moment, and a rather entertaining wave of despair came from him. His words, while honest, were undoubtedly conjured to make her cooperate in a timely manner. “...You’re right. I forgot what kind of bullshittery we’re dealing with out here. I shouldn’t have doubted you.”
Nakree nodded, and turned back to the village. “None of the weaving is my own, but yes. There is magic everywhere, and I have never seen so much resting in the air like this.”
“You think the guy who sent his pet after us put this up? Or, wait, hell, you said your brother lived here?” Keith suggested.
Nakree looked closer at the threads of magic in the air, trying her best to see some sort of pattern. The weaves looked familiar, yet strange at the same time. She could feel them all as the hundreds on hundreds of threads drifted through the air, each offering the same unplaceable feeling. She had never felt this strange emotion before. It was a sense of confusion she would expect were she to open her door one day and find herself in a different land. Visibly, they were no different than any other magical strand, looking like silky glowing lines dancing through the air, but the emotions they elicited were unplaceable. It was as if a dozen minds had woven each thread, and each soul involved had possessed a different vision of what the weaving was to accomplish.
She shook her head before turning back to reply. “This magic is not the work of my kin, and I don’t believe it to be the work of the miscreant who attacked us.” She tilted her head as she watched his mind react to her words, and his thoughts answered a question she had been about to ask. “You still trust your tools to guide you. That is why you are distressed, and why you knew there to be magic here.”
He nodded, holding up his image of the land. “No one drew this. A machine… a complex tool, drew this just like a person would, but a lot faster and a lot more accurate. It can make mistakes, sure, but the only reason it would make this kind of mistake is…” He faltered, and his mind wandered towards his companions.
“Blue creature!” Called Nakree, sensing Keith’s goal, and aiming to summon the little vermin before Keith could. To her annoyance, all three of the travelers in blue clothing turned to look at her. She ruffled her feathers bitterly, and pointed a hooked talon at the reptile. “You. Your leader wishes to know why your tools have failed.”
Nissu blinked a few times, before turning to Keith. “Can you translate that into something that doesn’t involve iron age retard noises?”
Nakree reared up at the remark, and leapt into the air, aiming a two legged kick at the reptilian vermin. The blue devil was saved by his reflexes, leaping out of the way scarcely a moment after Nakree’s feet had left the earth. His insults and angry hissing were pleasing to her ears, but a look to Keith just elicited his hands covering his face.
“...As I was about to say, Nissu, is there some sort of threshold for tunnel energy that just blurs images, but doesn’t disable the camera?” Sighed the human.
“Well, duh! That’s why we’re out here, ain't it?” Replied Nissu. “And that's all I'm seeing with my cameras. Blurs where… The… Well, this ain’t fuckin right.”
“What ain’t fuckin right?”
“It’s…” Nissu held one of his strange tools in front of him, lurching back and forth as if he were trying to very slowly swat away an insect. “I can mostly see the ground, but the people and the huts are all blurry. I’ve never seen this kind of thing outside of light refraction tech, and even then that works on the naked eye as well.”
Nakree looked back at the village once more, and searched for her own thread of magic. As she expected, it drifted in the air, ending somewhere unseen amidst the vast tangled web of other strands. As one thread drifted close by, the strange feeling they elicited suddenly hit her. These weaves were unfinished, but were being sung into existence before her eyes. She listened for the song of an enchanter, but heard none.
“Keith?” She called, trying not to sound bitter at needing to ask for permission to ply her trade. “I will be able to understand the woven magic here, but I will need to sing my own.”
The man winced at her words, and mulled them over for a moment before turning to the human woman. “How long for your scan, Natasha?”
She shrugged, and fiddled with her tied up hair. Unlike her counterparts, the woman still somehow held her cheerful demeanor, even seeming fascinated by the magic before her. “This pattern is so bizarre, I honestly can’t say. It may take me an hour before I even see all of it, and it could take five for me to undo whatever is happening, or at least alter it for our cameras to work. This shouldn’t work this way! Tunnel energy shouldn’t be able to selectively target which sorts of mediums it shows up in, and what sort of equipment doesn’t work!”
“Damnit.”
“It will take me a few moments, and I will see all that your tools see, and more.” Nakree declared, not bothering to hide her smug satisfaction at outdoing the blue clothed artisans.
Keith cursed under his breath, and shook his head before he finally replied. “Alright, go for it.”