Rise of The Fallen

-Elazar-

The female stood near the edge of the pond, staring into the clear depths in front of her. Grabbing something from my sack, I stood up and walked over. Startled, she jumped as I approached, watching as I stepped into the pool.

I was knee deep when I held out my hand for her to take. She stared at it for so long I thought she might not take it. But to my delight, she reached out, placing her hand in mine.

She discarded her fur blanket onto the shore and stepped into the water towards me.

Her eyes met mine and my heart skipped a beat. The world around me seemed to fade away as her eyes sparkled, her allure so powerful in that moment that I lost my train of thought.

Her palm was warm and soft against mine, so small and dainty that I was almost afraid I might hurt her just from holding it. Aside from her bruises and cuts, her pale skin was almost ethereal. She was so small and weak, yet beautiful.

A primal instinct inside of me longed for nothing more than to hold her against my body and protect her. She was hardly fit enough to protect herself, and had only survived a grizzly attack because she’d found a knife belonging to my people. Even still, I couldn’t wrap my head around how she’d survived out here on her own.

My eyes moved to her hair. Reaching out, I removed a small leaf from her mane. The female flinched before realizing I was not hurting her. Only then did she relax.

Why did she act like I might hit her? That thought bothered me greatly.

As I rubbed the silky strands of her hair between my fingers, marveling at how soft they’d feel against my skin, another thought came to mind.

What were the odds she was in search of a mate? Of a male to protect and provide for her? My fingers curled around hers. If she was, then what was the possibility that she–

Her gaze moved to our joined hands, snapping me out of my daze. I quickly let her go and turned away, my shoulders hunching in embarrassment. I shouldn’t be thinking about such things.

Removing my attire, I moved deeper into the water and threw my leathers onto land so they would not get wet. Clearing my throat, I got the female’s attention. “Come, you should fully submerge your injuries and let them soak.”

I beckoned her over with a simple hand signal. She moved deeper into the water, watching me curiously as I did my best to avoid meeting her eyes. “I’ll wash off, and then get out. You should stay in here a bit longer. By morning your wounds will be less likely to rip open if you move around.”

Once I was sure she understood me well enough, I made quick work of cleaning myself off before striding from the pool. Turning my back to give her privacy, I crouched less than a foot from the edge of the water in case she needed me. I grabbed my sack and rummaged through my supplies, the night air kissing my skin as it dried.

Once she’s finished, I’ll give her some food and she can rest while I figure out what I’m going to do with her.

The slightest sense of being watched poked at the back of my neck and I glanced over my shoulder in time to see the tiny human gawking at me. I immediately noticed the reddish tint across her face and my mind raced to the worst possible conclusion; she had a fever. Her eyes traveled up my back and to my face. She gasped when her eyes met mine, and she turned away quickly.

Not only was she fevered, she was acting peculiar, another sign that something was clearly wrong.

She shouldn’t be sick. I treated all her injuries and gave her medicine. Did something bite her while she slept? She wouldn’t even be aware of the pain from a bite due to the numbing properties in the paste. I needed to check her for any bite marks, but if I tried searching her now, I could frighten her.

Perhaps when she falls back asleep… she does not seem to be showing any other symptoms.

Groaning, I ran my claws through my hair in frustration, sitting cross-legged. I’d keep a close eye on her while she bathed, in case her symptoms worsened.

Out of the corner of my eye I spotted the female’s strange bag, something oddly shaped sticking out that I hadn’t spotted before.

Grabbing the strap, I pulled it closer and took hold of the object. It consisted of hundreds of extremely thin cloth-like segments, bound between the folds of a piece of hard leather. The leather creaked as I opened it to inspect the material within. Much to my surprise, each of these segments held charcoal drawings and markings, most of which I could easily identify.

Pictures of fauna and flora native to these forests were spread throughout the many sections, with many strange symbols that I could only guess to be part of the human language.

Was this her way of learning about my world?

The female suddenly shouted. I jerked my head up in panic, only to see her pushing through the water to get to me, her voice frantic. She spouted gibberish, reaching for the item in my hand. I held it above her head with ease, studying her reaction curiously.

Why didn’t she want me to touch this?

Growing frustrated, she climbed out of the pool, trying to take it from me while I kept moving it out of her reach. Even standing to her full height while I sat, she was still rather small. Amusement made my lips curl.

She continued to angrily spout incomprehensible nonsense while practically climbing over me, helplessly reaching for the booklet.

She shifted again, managing to position her chest right in front of my face. My eyes shifted from the item I was holding to her breasts, the globes mere inches from me. They swayed hypnotically, stealing my focus from teasing her.

The large, round shape was entrancing, and I couldn’t help but stare at the small pink buds on each one. Unconsciously, my free hand reached out to grab one of those perky globes. My eyes widened at how soft and heavy her breast felt in my palm, and I lost all train of thought as I lightly squeezed it.

I dropped the booklet, and her breast, as the female smacked me hard in the face, shouting angrily above me. She shoved at my shoulders, and I swallowed thickly as she bent over, showing off a tantalizing glimpse of her backside as she plucked her booklet from the ground.

I touched my burning face as she scurried away from me, moving to the other side of the pool with an angry glare.

I blinked a few times, trying to understand what had just happened as the human looked at me as if I had just dishonored her entire bloodline.

Furrowing my brow, I stood up. She tensed before shouting more nonsense at me. Through all the gibberish that came from her mouth, I only caught a few words in my native tongue, one of them being ‘haisu.’

A rat.

Glaring back at the female, I stomped over, ignoring the fury burning in her eyes. She quickly grabbed a rock beside her and threw it, aiming for my head. I dodged it easily, growling in irritation as I glowered at her in disbelief.

What is this human’s problem?!

With the first projectile missing, she crouched down and started throwing even more at me, calling me a rat again.

A few managed to hit me, although they did little more than annoy me as I shielded my face with my arm.

“Stop this! I am not a rat!” I bellowed.

She didn’t listen, continuing to hurl rocks, sticks and anything else she could grab off the ground as I approached her. As she grabbed a larger stone, I rushed in, closing the gap between us. My fingers locked around her wrist, and I shook her hand to make her drop her weapon, mindful of her injuries.

She shrieked in outrage, struggling to pull away from me. She held the booklet protectively against her chest and even kicked at me, trying to get away, much like she had earlier in the water.

“Knock it off!”

I snatched the booklet from her, and she tried to grab it back. But I grabbed both her wrists in one hand and pinned her back against a tree with her arms above her head. She squirmed and struggled with all her might, but it hardly made me budge or relinquish my hold.

I glared down at the small female as another growl escaped me.

“Enough of this!” I scolded sternly, and she momentarily halted her movements to glare back at me. “I am not a rat. I am Elazar! Son of Kren and Sharis! Understand? EL-AZ-AR.” I emphasized my name while placing my hand on my chest. “Now say it.”

Her eyes narrowed at me with a hard glare and she didn’t speak a word, so I repeated, “Say it. El-az-ar!”

Although her hateful gaze remained, her body relaxed a bit against me. She eyed me for a moment before something seemed to click in her head and her gaze moved down.

Confused, I looked down, not realizing her intentions until she grabbed ahold of both my horns. She pulled on them roughly, yanking my head to the side.

Before I knew it, she hooked one of her legs behind my own and pulled it out from under me. I slipped and fell back in the dirt, releasing her in the process.

I looked up at her in surprise, amazed that she’d taken me down even in her weakened state. She snatched the booklet out of my hand once more, holding it to her chest protectively.

“Fi ku! Pevat!” She angrily spat in her tongue, making some kind of strange hand signal with her middle finger before stomping off into the forest, leaving me sprawled in the dirt, both shocked and aroused.