Castaway Planet

Calendar 259872/ 2000 [ Sol Year 4387/ Day 153 of 365. Sol standard year]

Days after of Crash landing/ 2

Uninhabited Island / Ruins / Chamber Felines sleeping in

Galactic Standard Time / 0700

As the Feline Humanoids started to wake up, a white female had already been awake for an hour. She had checked on Harill and to her relief, the old one was still alright. After everything that had happened, the poor old one had fallen apart. the Harill had been raised in a very religious den, and to see a dead Creator had broken him completely.

Not that the white-furred feline was any better. She had a history that forced her to either draw on religion or her friends for strength. And thankfully she had a friend to be her strength. But she had spent so long listening to the sermons she understood what everyone was feeling.

“You okay Nyllia?” A hard male voice asked from behind.

Turning the white-furred feline, Nyllia smiled at the voice. It was the Crimson-furred male with the Creator Metal sword over his right shoulder.

“Oh, Zezill. Yeah, I’m fine,” Nyllia said before grinning. “Can you believe it? I’ve gained the Power! And that armor I gave you, I mean! If I can learn to cast it at more than one target, think of what we could do!”

“This alone could change the tide of the War! If it should continue,” Zezill said with a snarl.

Nyllia looked at him and saw that her friend was looking at the Creator Metal they had harvested from his kill. “Are you sure about that? With all that Metal, the Great Smiths could create enough weapons for everyone. This could turn the tide, we could win.”

“And then what, think. Why was war even started according to the old songs?” Zezill asked with a sharp look.

“Oh,” Nyllia said as she blinked, everything her friend was saying suddenly making sense. For her entire life, she had been taught that her people fought for the right to succeed them. That one day, those beings would see that her kind was the right one. That they would win the War against the Others and win the Great One’s blessings.

But the Great Ones were dead, dead so long they had become bones. This one discovery made the entire war pointless! But would the Chiefs of her people see it that way? She didn’t know. They used Religion to hold power, and she had seen what beings would do to get ahead. The unspoken fear that the survivors would be killed by their own, wasn’t too far off.

“And I’m more worried about what the Chiefs will say about what we found. And the….. implications. Or what they will do to us,” Zezill said with a slight growl as he looked around. “We need to talk. And by that I mean the few of us who can even make choices about where to go.”

Nyllia looked at her friend before her smile fell. “Yeah. We do. All of us and the Watchers?”

“Yes. At least our numbers will let us decide fast. I would almost say him too. But with how he is,” Zezill said softly. As one they looked at their Trainer, Harill, who was just staring into space. The

Nyllia felt for him, she did. The old one was the one who believed in their Religion the most besides the priests. And now, after everything they had found he had just shut down. She didn’t know if she was shocked or amused, that the one who pushed them had broken. That line of thinking was wrong, but still. “Do you think he’ll be okay?”

“I don’t know. The Old man believed in them hard, didn’t he? To think that this happened after all that talk of his. It’s not right!” Zezill said with a scowl as he flexed his claws as he looked at the elder. “That he gets to take a vacation in his mind while we clean up the mess! If I had a way to get him to heal I’d do it in a claw-slash!”

All Nylia could do was nod, she felt the same. The old man always tried to make her more aggressive. So what if she knew how to heal, that didn’t make her less of a warrior! She knew how to help the injured, and she could kill with the best of them.

“Everyone, come over here!” Zezill called out loudly.

Letting out a sigh, Nylia looked around and nodded as the others came over. This was what they needed to do to survive. But something told her that this was going to be bad.

<>------------------------------------------------<>------------------------------------------------<>

As Zezill looked around as the others stood around, he put the sword down before stepping back. “We all know why we’re here. And what happened plus what we learned. But our leaders are gone or….. incapable. We need to decide where we’re going to go.”

“What’s there to decide!? We need to get home!” One of the Watchers snarled.

Zezill only looked at the feline and shook his head. He had often thought that the dead leader of the Watchers found those it liked to join. And that answer told him everything he needed to know about the other Watchers. Maybe they could watch their Harill on the search?

“He means how will we get back home ya kit!” A voice snarled.

Zezill up at the speaker. Guricall was always backing up whoever spoke sense.

As Guricall looked at the Watcher with his black eyes, he crossed his pitch black fur and. His weapon, a sling, and dagger were still on his belt so there was that at least.

“What about back the way we came? Shouldn’t the Bladetongues have left?!” The second Watcher asked with hope in his voice.

It took all Zezill had not to stare at the fool in shock at his stupidity. He was one of the Watchers, he should know the habits of the beasts! Did they do nothing all day but praise their former leader!? And he had to admit, that he kind of expected that from them.

But Guricall surprisingly didn’t say anything. All he did was chuckle as Zezill shook his head.

“No, I saw them. That was a mating pair, they have to be building a nest by now. We need another way home!” Zezill said with force.

“So they’re turning that place into their home? Will the young leave there and come here then!?” The Watcher asked and Zezill blinked.

He looked at Guricall who had blinked, and opened and closed his mouth. Something about the way his friend was staying quite bothered Zezill a lot.

“I want to say no, but yeah. This is going to be a big problem before too long,” Guricall said with a scowl.

“Why?” The last Watcher asked.

“Because Bladetongues only leave after their nests are destroyed. And with a home like that chamber, they’ll just breed uncontrolled. And into numbers that’ll make us flee the village!” Zezill spat and looked at the Watchers in disgust. “How was a mated pair even nearby?! It’s your job to keep them away!”

The Watchers all looked down and away from the gazes of the others. For a moment, all Zezill could do was stare at them. But the longer he did, the more a strange thought formed in his mind. It was impossible, it was unthinkable! But if it was true……. Zezill had to know. “Tell me to my face. Swear by your claws that you didn’t have orders to ignore those things mating.

But all he was met with was silence until one of the Watchers spoke. “We……. Don’t know. The boss went back to report, and when he came back he ordered us to stand down. Only let us hunt around the opening into this place. We never asked after he stopped holding back in spars when we did.”

“Oh. I wasn’t expecting that!” Guricall exclaimed as the others took in that bit of information.

“Me either,” Zezill muttered then shook himself. “Well, we have to figure out where to go. Past the room that the Bladetongues are in, or away and hope to find another way back home?”

“How will we even get through the doors? I mean that one held out for generations! So how?” Guricall asked, sounding completely defeated.

“There has to be a way. If the ones who built this place weren’t gods, then there must be. We just have to find a source of food first. And water,” Nyllia said softly. As everyone looked at her, she stood straighter and looked around. “We are Warriors, all of us! We have trained and fought to survive the tests! And I will not rollover and die! We can do this! I say we go away!”

“Away!” Another voice roared out.

“Away! Away!” The chanting grew in volume until everyone was chanting.

Zezill looked around and grinned. “Then our choice is made! We move in five clawslasshes! Watchers, protect and move along the old one! Guricall, Nyllia with me up front!”

As the others went to prepare to leave, Guricall came over to him and looked at him for a few seconds. “If we can’t find anything to eat, this will be pointless. You know that brother?”

Zezill nodded, feeling the same thing Guricall did. But the only other option was to die to the Bladetongues. Despite everything, he couldn’t see anything else that they could do. “I know, but we need hope. You have to know that. And this started because something opened the door, you know that. If something could do that, we could. And we might already know what the keys are.”

Zezill let his gaze sweep over to Harill and looked at him. His state was because of what they found. The dead body of one of the Creators, one reduced to a skeleton. A skeleton that didn’t have a hand attached to it.

<>------------------------------------------------<>------------------------------------------------<>

Guricall went still before looking at Zezill. Following his friend’s gaze, he saw Zezill was looking at Harill. As he watched, Harill was muttering his prayers to the Creators loud enough for them to hear him. Guricall felt terrible about how the old man was acting, how he had gone crazy. The old one was a firm believer in the religion their people had crafted. But what did Zezill mean by looking at him? Before he could even think of what to say, it hit him.

“Oh. The bodies of the ‘Makers’, that’s the key!?” Guricall asked, completely shocked.

All that Zezill did was nod.

Guricall had to admit, that this was a very dangerous idea. To put all their chances on that being true, was supremely risky. But they didn’t have anything else to do but sit and die. “You lead, I’ll follow.”

Zezill only nodded and walked off towards the door. After a moment, Guricall followed after him.

Five minutes later, the group walked out into the hallway. Guricall looked towards the door they had first escaped from. He could hear the cries of the Bladetongues in there. For a single moment, he almost tried to think of an argument. A plan that might work to get through them, then he stopped. The cries had raised in volume, there were at least enough to make a small flock. The small group that they had? They would all die before they could even get to the door to the forest floor.

Turning away, he saw the others had moved on, Harill and the Watchers at the back. With a small shake of his head, he moved after them. Moving faster, he soon was next to Zezill and Nyllia.

Nyllia looked at him and he could detect the scent of joy from her. He kept silent as she giggled a little.

“Watching our back my friend?” Nyllia asked and Guricall shook his head.

“Was seeing if there was anything we could do to get by the ‘tongues. Nothing, and there are more of them there now. We don’t have a choice. Think we’re going the right way at least?” Guricall asked with a sigh.

“I don’t know. But we don’t have a choice. We’ll stop and look into each door. We might get lucky,” Zezill said with a sigh.

For the next half an hour, they traveled in silence. Each door they came across doors was locked tight. And with every failure to get into a room, their moral fell lower each time. All they needed to do was get lucky once, and then they might survive this nightmare.

“….So I know you said not to, but maybe we could try and take the blades from their tongues?” One of the Watchers asked.

Guricall thought that he couldn’t think any lower of the Watchers, but there it was. The hunting method of taking the blade meant to let the Bladetongue attack first. Once the blade was stuck, then cut off its tongue to let it bleed to death. With only one of them and luck, it was possible. The trick was only used against loners, and still, those hunters who were bait usually died. But with a flock, even a small one? That was courting death for them all! As he looked over his shoulder, he saw that the faces of the others had changed slightly. They were losing their morale fast, and the Watchers's idea sounded good. Someone needed to stop this and fast if they wanted to stay alive.

Zezill must have seen what Guricall had, for he whistled and everyone looked at him.

“That hunting trick? You know the chances of death are high with that!” Zezill spat and the Watchers looked at him with somber looks.

“But it might be the only chance we have of seeing our tribe again!” One of the Watchers said with a sorrowful look.

“Will one of you three volunteer to be bait then?” Zezill asked abruptly.

Guricall looked at the Watchers as all of them looked away and he chuckled. He was starting to get the Watcher’s measure, and he didn’t like them. They might have been brave warriors at one point, but now they were scared fools. They were barely keeping Harill following along behind them, and Harill was still a mess!

<>------------------------------------------------<>------------------------------------------------<>

Zezill barely kept his wraith from the Watchers as he stared at them. Their reaction had done all he needed to know about what these ‘Warriors’ were. He didn’t know what would happen to them if they were like that before their former leader got a hold of them. And he didn’t care, all he knew was that they needed each other to survive. That had to be enough, and they needed something.

Ahead of them, the path branched off into a cross. Stopping, he closed his eyes and tried to focus. There had to be a clue, something that would let him know where to go. As he looked around, he suddenly smelled something. He turned towards the right, closer to the scent. It smelled of plants and more importantly, water. Fresh, wonderful water.

“Can you smell that?” Guricall asked in awe.

Zezill nodded, looking down the right path, and took a deep sniff. There was something else there, something that smelled delicious. “Yeah. But can you smell the other scent?”

“What is it?” Nyllia asked in wonder as the others caught the scents.

The rest of the group looked at each other, hope growing in their eyes. The fact that they might have found water was something that they couldn’t believe. And the other scents told of food being there.

“I’ll lead!” Zezill said as he dashed forward, changing his stance to charge on all four limbs. The others fell in behind him, only the Watchers and Harill staying upright. As they ran closer, the scent of the water increased, stronger than anything he had ever smelled. The stories about the War Front told of a great thing of Water, was this that? But then how had they made it there with how far away it was?

Nothing about this place made sense to him, and that was fine. He had always thought there was some lie in his Tribe’s religion. It wasn’t something definite, just something at the edge of his mind that told him, this was wrong. He hadn’t spoken of it, having seen what happened to those who had. But with their discovery that at least one of the Makers was dead, his mind had gone blank. That meant that the Religion they had was broken, or it was made to control them all by the Chiefs. And he had to be honest, he didn't know how to feel about that idea.

Turning the corner as the scents grew stronger, they turned a corner. Zezill was finally able to see where the scent was coming from, an open door ahead of them, and he cried out. As one the group rose to their feet and Zezill held up his hand.

Moving towards the door, he saw that there was a wall five feet from the opening. Sticking his head into the doorway, he looked to the left, seeing only another wall. Finally turning to his right, he saw something that took his breath away.

<>------------------------------------------------<>------------------------------------------------<>

Nyllia looked at Zezill who had gone still. The only time that happened was when he was shocked and she hoped this was a good shock.

“Zezill? What is it?” Guricall called out as his hand went to his dagger.

“Just what we needed! Come on!” Zezill exclaimed as he dashed into the door.

The others followed after him, leaving only Guricall and Nyllia. Moments later cries of joy came from within. Nyllia looked at Guricall who shrugged and grinned wide.

“Let’s go! I want some of that water!” Guricall exclaimed as he ran through the door.

As he cried out in joy within, Nyllia looked at the Watchers as they finally reached her. As Harill walked through the doorway, Nyllia looked around with worry in her heart. Something was there, something just at the edge of her senses. But the cries from within finally got to her and she turned, walking into it. When she saw what was there, she grinned and felt a tear leave her eyes.

“That’s so beautiful!” Nyllia said with joy in her heart.

Farther down the hallway, a hooded face looked out from an intersection. The figure only chuckled as he watched the Felines move into the doorway. “More sacrifices for the God, perfect! And they’re already in that place! All we need to do is get the others and the God will feed well tonight!”

The figure turned and ran away, a symbol of the Beast Cult on its back.