Extra O(r)dinary Story Part1.5

Struggle Within

Ep: 5

“Relax,” Saine assured, “We have the dragons on duty for a good reason, we should hear from them within a day.”

“Eril taught me one thing over the years,” Eric said, “Never take Saine’s assurance.”

Saine clutched his chest. “Ow, that hurt Eric.”

“Well actually,” Eric confessed, “Eril said ‘be very worried when Saine says relax’.”

---

An alarm in Blue Dragon’s Cave went off suddenly. Scrambling to her feet, the dragon in human form rushed to where the teleporting machine was. Whenever the alarm goes off, it meant intruders travelled illegally within world layers. Upon checking the systems, it was teleportation.

In Armaia, only two people knew teleportation --- Eril and Valeth. She could not tell who it was. Just as she was leaving for Green Dragon’s Hut, the alarm went off again. There were two, both through teleportation. Brenda cursed. If one of them was Eril, what would Valeth want with her?

The Green Dragon’s Hut stood exactly in the middle of the world map. Surrounded by an illusional forest, no one was able to infiltrate the doorway to other world layers. She was the second level security to prevent or track down trespassers or illegal immigrants. The world was further split into two for a good reason. They did not want any beings crossing over without any control. That would mean yet another war for the humans and demi humans.

“Greena!” Brenda called out as she exited the teleporter.

The Green Dragon welcomed her guest with a worried look. “I got a lock on the first signal but lost the second one.”

“We’d leave for the first one.”

The green dragon wore a long, green dress. Unlike Brenda, she was a megic user thus preferred to doll herself up in pretty dresses. Though not a vain person, she looks into the mirror at times admiring her own beauty.

Over the years, none of the male dragons paid attention to her. Not even the ones at Dragonet. It was sort of depressing as she was the most beautiful among the Elemental dragons. Though some Gods sang praises of her beauty at times, it was not enough. Despite all, she was still a cool headed dragon who handles any situation well.

As they hastened their footsteps to the spot of the first teleportation trial, they found no clues of the intruder. Greena mused for a moment. They were close to Bearman territory; they might know something about this person.

---

Jit Meng wondered aimlessly into the wild. He had no weapons, no armour to defend himself. If he ran into monsters, he had to run. If the monsters were faster than him, it would be game over. He shook away the depressing thoughts as he searched for any forms of civilisation.

Travelling for more than half a day, he was still stuck in the plains with nothing to consume. His knees felt weak, his focus slowly wearing off, his body dehydrating from the sun.

Feeling hungry and desperate, he yelled, “FOOD!”

A sabre-toothed tiger came into view growling angrily.

Jit Meng slapped himself. “Should’ve kept my mouth shut.”

A spear dived in from above and dug deep into the soils. The tiger took a step back while growling defensively. When he looked up, a giant vulture was spotted circling the skies. For a moment Jit Meng thought it was going to wait for any leftovers to feast on. He slouched his shoulders bleakly; this would be the end of their little vacation in Armaia.

As the tiger was about to pounce on him, the giant bird plunged its claws into it from above. The poor feline whimpered in pain as it retreated. Jit Meng took a closer look at his saviour; it was not a giant bird but a bird demi human. He had the body of a human but limbs of a bird. His wings were intimidating just to look upon while his arms were thick with bulging muscles. Though his hands were bird claws, he did not have any issues carrying his spear around. Dressed in light body plates and a half helmet, Jit Meng assumed he was a warrior in his tribe.

“What is a human doing here?” The bird man asked. He had a deep manly voice despite his animal origins.

“I was uh ...” Jit Meng shrugged, “Accidentally came here.”

“No matter, I will bring you to the Green Dragon, you can explain things to her.” When he turned around, Jit Meng stared at his eagle-like beak.

With a warrior around, he would not have to fear for his safety. Sighing in relieve, he hoped Eril would be okay.

---

In the heart of the Bearman tribe stood a magnificent structure of Demi Human’s religion. Inside the structure it was a great hall where Demi Humans gather to worship their Gods. Before the Gods, there was Eril. She may not hold the highest rank in Atlantis, she was the most worshipped figure in Demi Human culture. Even when it comes to politics, they listen to Eril first before their own Gods.

There was a time when Humans enslaved Demi Humans to do their biddings. The Gods turned a blind eye to their grievances. When a racist force came in to eradicate all Demi Humans, the Gods did nothing. Eril defied the creator Himself and led her own group to put an end to it. After that she opened the abandoned world in Armaia for the Demi Humans to live in. When they first came in, the place was full of ruins. With influence from Eril, the Gods helped out in rebuilding the Demi Human realm now known as ‘Miglot’.

She too was known for her three forms --- human, Demi-Human and animal. Throughout the world of Armaia, only Eril possess the feline fur of pure whiteness. Thus people call her ‘Holy Mother of Demi Humans’.

Eril in her cat form was placed on an alter while the female Bearmen grovel with their heads touching the floor. They chanted in some foreign language as Eril looked upon them curiously. She had no idea what was going on but it felt amusing just to watch. As the ritual went on, the leader of the tribe stood up to give her a few assuring strokes on her head. Eril enjoyed it as she purred in delight.

Just then a force thundered in. All the Bearmen raised in hostility to welcome their intruder. The hooded figure at the door said nothing. As the Bearmen ready their weapons, the hooded figure revealed part of her face.

“How dare you worship a fake cat?” Her voice roared through the halls angrily.

All the Bearmen kneeled in grave fear.

“Please forgive us! Our sights have failed us.” The high priestess spoke.

“Fine, I shall take this cat with me.”

As she walked towards the alter, she carried the cat and teleported out of the room. The Bearmen rose as they feared Eril might take action at their mistake. The high priestess assured nothing would happen to them should she peruse this matter. Brenda and Greena entered the room shortly after.

“Was that Eril?” Brenda asked.

“She left.”

Sensing something was amiss, Greena suggested Brenda to check on the two signals again. She had a hunch both intruders should be back in Raylan by now. Although Brenda had no suspected a thing, Greena was musing at who the second teleporter could be.

---

The bird warrior brought Jit Meng to a small tavern where they found a comfortable seat to have their meal. A Cow demi human was at the counter taking orders while female feline humans were seen serving customers. Jit Meng scratched his head wondering why this tavern lacked some male helpers around. It almost gave a bad impression that these people were sexists until the Birdman explained things.

“Well you see, in our world, the males are always busy hunting for food, hence you won’t see them serving customers in a tavern like this”

Jit Meng nodded his head.

As a female feline attended to them, Jit Meng could not help staring at her features. She was very different from Eril, all of them were. None of them had human features other than their body. All of them were wearing simple cloth unlike Eril whose fur was her cloth. Then, he noticed none of them had fur as thick and as decorative as Eril’s. His thoughts chained endlessly as he continued to look at the feline human.

The lady feline twitched her whiskers uncomfortably.

“Pardon the human,” the Birdman started, “you’re very attractive.”

The feline human purred in delight as she took their orders.

The Birdman then continued explaining the Green Dragon’s Hut was nearby. Once they finish their meals, they would set off to meet the Green Dragon. Hopefully she would know what to do with it, er, him.

Their drink came first, it was two glasses of warm milk. “Drink up, its fresh from the counter.”

Jit Meng took a glance at the Cow human at the counter and noticed her multiple mammary. He choked at his words.

“Humans,” the Birdman sighed, “make a big fuss about the things we do. Wait till you see how bird nests were made!”

Their meals came shortly after. As he took a bite at the food, he noticed a hint of Eril’s distinctive style in it. Eril must have had a big influence in the Demi Human world even in cooking styles. Without giving second thoughts, he swallowed the whole thing hoping he could return soon. This ‘defeat’ once again bothered him greatly. All he ever did when Eril was in danger was run away. He wished he would have more courage to deal with such situations.

The tavern grew noisy all of a sudden as a couple of Bearman guards came into view. The Birdman explained Bearmen was the proudest tribe of all in Miglot as the very first Demi human was a Bearman. Because it was a female bear, females in this society held more dignity and weight unlike that of Human’s world. However to the rest of the Demihumans, the Bearmen guards were most annoying.

Bearmen guards were held with lowest respect in Bearman tribe. They were all men as the women worships the Gods. Being looked upon with low regards and asked to perform prolonged tasks, these people were usually in bad mood. Uncivilised, rude brutes. No one liked them. The Knights and Soldiers had more respect than them. Though all males, the Guards had no weight in the political world.

One of them was getting rowdy over a lady feline. He grabbed her hand while hinting some obscene ideas. No one in the Tavern dared to stand up against them as the bears were famous for their strength. Even Jit Meng at the side felt helpless to do anything. Should he had Sirch with him things would be so different.

The birdman hit the table angrily, “Leave the lady alone!”

The leader walked over the Birdman spouting endless challenging nonsense. However the Birdman remained calm. He held his spear firmly ready for an attack. As the Bearman was about to strike, the other one stopped him. Something about the Birdman’s half helmet scared them. In a while, they scrambled out of the Tavern and then things were quiet again. The lady thanked him politely as she went back to her post.

Jit Meng was impressed at how the Birdman scared the Bearmen away. He must had been a prominent figure in Miglot to have them freak out like this. After this incident, he felt so relieved that he met a reliable hero.

Without delay, they set off shortly after lunch. From afar Jit Meng noticed a wide stretch of trees. The Birdman informed that was the forest of illusions. In the middle stood the Green Dragon’s Hut. However, those who were not experienced enough would never reach the middle. His words struck fear into Jit Meng. If he did not follow the Birdman close enough, he would end up in an endless maze. In a worse case scenerio, he might even starve to death.

The moment they stepped into the forest, mist shrouded them. It was difficult to see the surroundings yet the Birdman moved forward confidently. Jit Meng felt a chill in his heart as he attempted to keep close. As the mist grew thicker, he struggled to keep up. Just within moments, the figure he thought he was following so far was nothing more than a cloud. He stopped. Gasping in fear, he yelled for aid.

His voice echoed within the thick mist. Nothing was ever going to save him. He felt so cold, so lonely. Falling on his knees, he gave up all hopes. This feeling of helplessness was something he had no experienced for quite some time. A tear of fright dropped from his eyes. Never in his live did he expect this to happen again.

Thinking back, he faced more fearsome monsters than this. More powerful foes that could end his life with a single blow. Yet he was going to lose to some illusion. Mental trauma indeed was worse than physical one. Taking in a deep breath, he told himself this would not be the end. He still had to return to his home, return to his friends ... return to see Eril ...

He stood up and yelled one last time. Should no one come to save him, he would wonder till an exit was found. He did not care how, he just wanted to get out of this place. Taking a step forward, his scenery changed from a misty forest to that of a clearing. Within the clearing was a Hut where the bird man was.

“Where did you go? I thought I almost lost you.”

A sense of gratefulness felt his heart with joy. Just a moment back he was going to die in the mist. Now he was out safely, ready to return.

“Welcome, what is it that you seek?” A lady walked out of the hut.

Jit Meng could not help but to stare at her beauty. Wearing a long green dress, this lady had her long hair tied in a fashionable way. Her dress was tightly adhered to the body - a slender, perfectly shaped body. She had sparkling eyes that could blind any man. Her busts ...

“Are you done staring?” The Green Dragon asked.

“Sorry,” Jit Meng turned away embarrassingly.

The Birdman explained the situation to her. Without a second word, the Green Dragon guided him to a teleporter saying she would let him go this time. Next time if he enters without permission again she would have to report to the Gods. Jit Meng nodded obediently without bothering to explain the whole story. As the lady was doing some settings on the machine, he was teleported to huge dark space.

Out of the darkness came a warm, familiar face - Brenda the Blue Dragon. She was the key for him to return.

---

Eril’s clone stood near the cottage where Saine was, waiting for any news. She threw Eril on the ground angrily as she cursed. All her life she was born to Eril’s negative side. Her suffering was all due to Eril’s wrong doings. She felt unfair, unjustified and unbearable. This kind of life did not belong to her. It was Eril; she was the one who should have deserved it all, not her. She looked upon her original counterpart with disdain.

Eril in her feline form arched her back ferociously with erecting fur. Her lips were drawn back revealing sharp teeth. At any moment now she would pounce on her clone and bit her to death. Snarling at her like a crazy cat, she caught the attention of the people inside The others rushed out to find Eril on the ground with a hooded figure nearby.

Saine recognised that figure. It was Eril. However, if that was Eril, who was the cat? Thinking back, he remembered Micheal ranting about how Eril’s mood turned sharply as if she was having PMS. Before he could stop her, the figure teleported out of the place. Eril calmed down as she stalked towards the people for some comfort.

As they went inside the house, no one said anything. They did not seem to suspect anything. Only Saine did for he knew in Armaia, only two people knew the art of self teleportation --- Eril and Valeth. Yet the hooded figure they met outside definitely was not Valeth while it was not Eril either. Just someone who looked and felt like Eril herself? How was that even possible in the first place? This fateful meeting with the mysterious figure deeply disturbed Saine.

Jit Meng was returned shortly after. They decided they should be returning tomorrow morning before things go out of hands again. He held no objections since Eril already recovered they had no purpose of staying any longer.

---

“Brenda, how was it?” Greena asked concernedly.

“Both signals went back to Raylan.”

“I had to assume one was Jit while the other was Eril,” Greena guessed.

“I can only hope it is,” Brenda shrugged. “I’m going to hand in a report to Saine, see what he thinks about this.”

---

Next morning right after breakfast, everyone readied their go-home-gear --- school uniforms. Eril surprisingly sent them off in her human form. They were all happy to see her old self again before leaving. Eric and Morph left first followed by Ee Hwa. Everyone said their goodbyes before stepping into the portal. Then, Jit Meng turned to Saine. He handed over Sirch saying he should probably keep it till the next time he returns. Saine obliged to take care of Sword.

When he was about to step into the teleporter, he felt a tug from the back followed by a soft whisper.

“I remembered everything.”

Her words drove him wild with excitement as his eyes bulged. Eril had recovered! Attempting to turn back to see her one last time, a force pushed him into the portal, bringing him back to Earth. After a series of whole body being sliced into million bits painlessly, he found himself back in the room again. The one that was supposedly demolished. Right by his side was his school bag.

Staring at it for a while, the whole adventure felt like a dream too good to be true. When he reached into his pocket, he found a coin that was supposedly brain wash the people around him.

As he stepped out of the apartment, he closed the door gently.

“Even after all that happened, I still ran away.”

The End