Dancing with the vodka t.., p.6
Whispers from the Poisoned Isle (Jekua Book 4), page 6
Niona could see the slightest ripple on the surface of Prince’s skin, and she knew Balt was enacting the Jekua’s Friction magic on itself and the Waillaby. She glanced at Balt, who bore a look of determination, his brows furrowed as he bit his lower lip.
Then he yelled, “Go!”
The stranger’s Toryoth immediately started flapping its wings, building up a tiny cyclone that grew larger and larger by the second. The Waillaby was starting to turn around, but Balt made sure to keep the Mudlad touching its feet.
“Hurry! Go!” Niona screamed.
The cyclone was huge now, half the size of the Waillaby itself. With one more forceful flap, the Toryoth sent it flying toward the looming beast. It opened its mouth to let out another wail, something to dissolve the cyclone speeding toward it, but the Waillaby was too slow.
It was able to let out a strangled yelp as the blast of wind hit it in the side. Combined with the slipperiness of Prince beneath its feet, the Waillaby went sliding backward with a ridiculous amount of momentum. It was sent rocketing off the shore, falling on its wounded ass into the sea.
They all watched with bated breath as the Waillaby composed itself and stood.
The receding waves tugged the creature back a bit further, since it was obviously unused to being in the ocean and unsure of how to steady itself. It was now almost waist-deep, its legs completely submerged. Water drenched the rest of its body, and the salt must have stung in its multitude of wounds.
Everyone acted quickly enough to cover their ears as the Waillaby prepared another roar, the tendrils dangling over its mouth being sucked into its maw while it inhaled, tickling its black tongue.
And then a purple tentacle shot out from the purple waves, wrapping around the Waillaby’s furry neck and cutting off its air supply. Then another tentacle emerged, grabbing its left arm. A third tentacle grabbed the other arm, then another wrapped around the Waillaby’s snout to keep its mouth shut.
The tentacles glistened in the sunlight, the sticky purple skin dripping with water.
A moment later, the one grasping the Waillaby’s left arm tugged, instantly ripping it from its socket. More blood and yellow bile poured from the fresh wound, polluting the water. With the unseen monster choking it, though, the Waillaby couldn’t even scream in agony, though its eyes widened in shock and terror.
The rest of the purple tentacles then pulled on the Jekua, yanking it off its feet and dragging it underwater. The Waillaby thrashed against it, kicking up massive waves and bubbles, but eventually the motion died off.
The three of them watched the water, waiting for any further sign of motion, but the Waillaby did not return.
When she was sure they were safe, Niona found it within herself to laugh. It was hollow, but she couldn’t help herself. She was utterly exhausted.
Staring out at the sea where the purple tentacles had appeared, she said, “Thanks, Oroptu.”
She had to confess, she had not been expecting to encounter a Jenu that day.
5
Rumors
Balt’s heart was still pounding in his chest and he couldn’t stop moving his leg. It bounced up and down uncontrollably, and his eyes were constantly shifting, scanning the area. Everything was seemingly safe, for now, but he couldn’t bring himself to relax.
He and Niona had tracked down Alani, Aeiko, and Brine in the cellar of a restaurant a couple blocks from the gondola station. The owner was kind enough to let them and the rest of the patrons down there to ride out the attack.
When they exited back out onto the streets, they were greeted by death and destruction. The mother Waillaby had smashed through several buildings on its way to the coast, but thankfully there was only one casualty from its attack. Well, three, if its babies were included in that number. The Summoners with the Muntoo and the Flarrow were not interested in taking any chances with them.
And while the man hadn’t died, Balt couldn’t help but wonder what was going to happen to the guy whose mask had been broken when the Waillaby destroyed part of the station. His entire life was about to change.
Balt tried to shake those dark thoughts and took a moment to inspect the mask clinging to his own face. From what he could tell, it was still fitting snug and secure. That was a relief.
It was impossible to calm down, though. Never before had he seen a Jekua act so blatantly aggressive. He knew that obviously there were some that were more dangerous (he’d read plenty of horror stories about Romproar and Wallago encounters on the forums), but those Jekuas were always provoked by Summoners entering their territory. He wracked his brain, but couldn’t think of a time he’d ever heard about a Jekua deliberately seeking out people to attack of its own accord.
The five of them had grabbed a table at the restaurant that so graciously hosted people in its cellar with the other Summoners who’d fought against the mutated Waillaby. Their group wasn’t eating anything, of course, but the men were chowing down on grilled swordfish steaks with lemon and garlic. Balt was unbelievably jealous of them when he breathed in the food’s aroma through his mask filter.
With his leg still jittery, he described to the men his unease about the situation. After he was done, Niona chimed in with her agreement. She’d traveled all over the world with her father, so Balt felt extra validated knowing that she hadn’t seen such behavior before either.
The guy with the Toryoth, whose name they learned was Dontero, nodded. “Yeah, you’ll find a lot of that here.”
“Welcome to Yuluhu,” said Biggs, the one who’d used the Muntoo.
“Shit sucks,” nodded Wedge, the Flarrow user.
Dontero looked to be around forty years old, while Biggs and Wedge were closer to Balt’s age, or somewhere between him and Niona. Their tan faces were striated with a pale green hue, making Balt wonder if they were related. In some ways, he was reminded of Yud and Yi. Wedge’s right eye bulged prominently, and there seemed to be something like spikes poking through his shirt on his shoulders. Biggs had a growth on one of his arms that made it almost double the width of his other one. The two younger guys were particularly intrigued by Brine, and were spending much of the meal gawking at the coral golem.
“It’s from the strihova,” said Dontero, cutting off a chunk of fish and swirling it around in the puddle of melted butter and garlic on his plate.
From what Balt had gathered, strihova was the name for the disease that riddled every living creature on Yuluhu Island. People tended not to discuss Yuluhu’s situation much beyond vague well-wishes and generic mutterings of “Such a shame,” so today was the first time Balt had ever heard the term. When he examined that fact, he realized how preposterous it was.
Dontero chewed his steak, swallowed, and went on. “It affects everyone different, as you can see.” He gestured at himself and the two boys, then rubbed the side of his head where his ear should have been. “Same with the Jekuas here. Some species have gone feral after decades of mutations, but some are still docile. A lot of them have mutations, some of them don’t.”
“Yeah,” said Niona, “my Jektionary said that was a Waillaby, but that sure didn’t look like one. I’ve also never heard of a Waillaby being as big as a damn building.”
That was true. A normal full-grown Waillaby would barely come up to Balt’s waist, and even the thing’s babies were bigger than that.
“Well, at least you were there to help us,” Balt sighed. Things had not been going well before Dontero showed up, and he had his doubts that the Waillaby would’ve been taken care of by just him and Niona.
“Mhmm,” Dontero mumbled. “You two were pretty good out there. I was impressed. It’s a good thing Karsiub had you as visitors. Truth be told, there aren’t too many Summoners on the island these days. We’ve got some, of course; nothing’s ever gonna wipe out summoning. But that poison making the Jekuas more and more feral has put a lot of people off the idea. Most folks nowadays want to stay as far from them as they can. I don’t blame them, really…if I was just getting my start today, I don’t think I would’ve pursued it.” He flashed a grin, his teeth stained with yellow. “I’m in too deep to quit now, though.”
Biggs and Wedge couldn’t have been summoning for more than a couple years. Evidently they didn’t care how aggressive the Jekuas on the island were. The notion made Balt anxious, personally. He did want to ask where Wedge had found that Flarrow, but that was a question for later.
Right now, there was something more pressing he wanted to know.
“You kept saying we had to get the Waillaby to the coast,” he said to Dontero. “How’d you know Oroptu would take it? Is that where Oroptu lives?” It had been a thrill seeing the Jenu in action, even if it had only been Oroptu’s tentacles.
“Oroptu’s all over,” said Wedge.
“Yeah, dude’s all over the place,” Biggs nodded.
Balt did not know what that meant, but Dontero was quick to step in and elaborate. “These huge attacks don’t happen super frequently, but there was a period of a few weeks back in…what was it? Five years ago, maybe? Yeah, 2900 sounds right. Five years ago, there was a really nasty Spring where Gontols kept leaving their usual habitat around the base of the mountain and attacked the villages on the coast. I don’t know if you’ve seen a Gontol, but it’s a huge, ugly brute. Just as big as that Waillaby and twice as mean. They usually keep to themselves, but something kept drawing them to us. Anyway, people would fend them off, and we realized that every time they got near the water, Oroptu was there and would drag the Jekua away.”
“Every time?” said Niona.
Dontero nodded. “Every time,” he confirmed. “Our best guess is that somehow Oroptu can sense when there’s some kind of disturbance on the island, and he warps to wherever that is.”
“That Waillaby was certainly causing a disturbance,” Balt muttered.
“How does Oroptu know where to go?” Alani asked. Aside from introductions, it was the first time she had spoken during the conversation. Like the rest of them, she was pretty shaken by the experience, especially after seeing what happened to the quarantine hotel.
The three locals shrugged. “Who the hell knows?” said Biggs.
“Dude’s a mythical creature, he can do whatever he wants,” Wedge added.
Balt wouldn’t quite call Jenus mythical, but they were indeed the rarest and most powerful of all the Jekuas. They were the only Jekuas that naturally possessed Warp abilities, as he had learned from his grandmother’s stories about Sawarestao. It was interesting to hear about Oroptu using his to teleport around the island’s coasts.
“Like I said, strihova has been running rampant here for close to three decades, and nothing has been left untouched. Nothing. Not even Oroptu, I imagine. If he was already a powerful Jenu, then maybe he’s been altered in some way to make his senses even stronger. I can’t say for sure. I’ve never seen anything other than his tentacles, and I don’t know anyone who’s seen more than that. Anyone who says they have is a liar, if I had to guess. What I can say, though, is that him coming to the surface used to be a much rarer thing. I’ve seen his tentacles lashing around out there more in the past five years than I have in the rest of my life.”
Now it was Aeiko’s turn to finally speak up. “It, uh…it seems like…” They seemed hesitant to express what they wanted to say. They shot furtive glances at the three men sitting across the table from them. “It seems like Yuluhu is far more dangerous than we thought before we came here.”
“And we already thought it was pretty messed up,” said Niona, clearly not worried about potentially offending these guys like Aeiko was.
For what it was worth, none of them appeared bothered by the comments. “What are you here for?” Dontero asked.
“A Church pilgrimage,” Alani answered.
“Don’t know what that is,” Dontero huffed.
“We have to go up to Lopatowk,” she then clarified.
“Ahh,” he nodded, then took a sip of his beer. “Yeah, that’s a tough one. A tough one. I’d be extra careful, if I was you.”
Quite an understatement, Balt thought.
“You ought to stick to the coast. The further inland you go, the likelier you’ll hit a snag. That’s where the more dangerous Jekuas live. They typically prowl around there, content to hunt smaller prey in there, but as you can see the coast has its fair share of trouble too. No need to invite more danger upon yourselves.”
“That was our plan anyway,” said Alani. She tried putting on a weak smile, but it was obvious that the man’s words were filling her with fear.
Dontero said, “Good. Good. The Mena Nito Forest is a place you should definitely be avoiding. Don’t wander in there, if you can help it.”
“We were going to be traveling along the edge of it, but not too deep in,” Aeiko said, fidgeting in their seat. Seeing them shift uncomfortably made Balt realize he still hadn’t gotten his leg to calm down. His heel was tap-tap-tapping on the sticky restaurant floor.
“That should be fine,” said Biggs.
Clearly the three men knew something the rest of them didn’t. “Is there something specific that you’re afraid of in the forest?” Balt asked.
“I’m not afraid of it,” Wedge was hasty to point out.
“That shit would tear you apart,” Biggs chided him.
Like usual, Dontero was the one to actually impart any information. “There’ve been reports of a…well, I don’t know what it is, exactly. Do you boys have any idea?” He was asking Biggs and Wedge, but they both shook their heads.
Balt huffed with amusement. Easy for Wedge to proclaim he wasn’t scared of something when he didn’t even know what it was.
The man continued, once more rubbing the earless side of his head. “Well, people have just been calling it the Stalker. I don’t know what it is, because no one who’s encountered it has been able to get a good look. That is, if they even survive the encounter. Most of the people who get away from it are Summoners who were able to fight back, but they’ve still not gotten a clear look at it. Anyway, I’m rambling—point is, there’s something that lives in the Mena Nito Forest that’s been killing people and Jekuas alike.”
Wedge scoffed. “All that’s just rumors, though.”
“I think it’s real,” Biggs said.
“Yeah, but you don’t know for sure, do you?”
“Do you wanna risk going deep in the forest to find out?”
“Sure!” Wedge boasted, stabbing his fork into his swordfish with vigor.
“Even if it’s not totally true, every rumor’s got a bit of truth to it,” Dontero grunted. “You’d be wise to stay out of there, if you’re able.”
The lot of them nodded, and Niona said, “Thanks for the tip.”
It would be a lie if Balt said his curiosity wasn’t piqued. A mystery Jekua called the Stalker? How could he not want to see it? Again, he was reminded of Yud and Yi, the twins who dubbed themselves the Mythseekers. The Stalker sounded exactly like something they would try to uncover.
Balt then shuddered at the thought of running into the headache-inducing twins here on Yuluhu. Hopefully it wouldn’t come to that.
They all chatted amiably for about a half hour after that, and Balt finally managed to slow his heartrate to its regular pace. During their conversation, he leapt at the opportunity to ask Wedge where he’d imprinted a Flarrow, and the guy told him about a spot up north where he’d found a flock of them. Apparently, their population was steadily dwindling, but a savvy Summoner could still find a few if they put in some effort. It was unfortunate that some of the birds couldn’t be brought over to the Volukho Wildlife Center, since Yuluhu was the only place where one could find Flarrows, but it made sense that they couldn’t risk introducing strihova to Qwi Island.
Once their plates were empty and they’d downed a second round of drinks, the locals excused themselves from the table. There was no telling where Biggs and Wedge were going, but Dontero explained that he was going to assist with the cleanup efforts now that he had a hearty meal in him. When Balt offered to come help, Dontero waved him off and said not to worry about it. “You’ve done more than enough to help our town,” he said with a warm smile.
Now they were left alone at the table, assuring the waiter that they didn’t need anything and would be leaving shortly. They’d felt okay about being there since the others had bought food, but now it was starting to grow awkward.
Through the cloudy glass windows they could see the sun beginning to set outside, painting the sky in dazzling hues of purple and pink. Just like the flower patch on Dipper’s back.
“I guess we’d better find an inn for tonight, huh?” Balt said.
Staying in a town that had just been attacked by Jekuas made him uneasy, but he was exhausted. No way was he up to hiking however many hours to the next town. They had wanted to get a head start on their journey north, but with night fast approaching, that seemed like a less viable option. He suspected that all of them were spooked by Yuluhu now, and no one would be eager to navigate it by moonlight.
Alani bit her lip and placed her hands on the table. The white shineink tattoos covering her body pulsed faintly in the restaurant’s dim lighting.
“I suppose so,” she said. Aeiko then nodded in agreement.
“Guess we’ll just hope another Waillaby doesn’t hop through town,” Niona said, voicing the concern they all harbored.
Alani frowned, unamused by the comment, but she didn’t comment on it. Balt knew her stress levels must be through the roof. He also thought that it had been a while since she popped one of the doctor’s mana supplements, but he didn’t want to smother her. She surely knew better than him when she needed to take another one.
“We’ll get an early start tomorrow,” Alani said, tapping her fingernails on the table. “Sound good?”
