Nephilim

Rain fell onto the moss-covered rooftops, pouring down like miniature waterfalls onto the ground, forming small streams on the dirt road through several tussocks of grass. Just above, trees waved their lush branches between ruined houses, their leaves rustled and sang as winds and rain blew through them while roots and vines covered and stilled the crumbling skeletons of what used to be hulks of steel and cements. A shrew ran from one ruined wall to another between the bushes of the undergrowth, trying to avoid the pouring rain. A fallen banyan tree provided the small rodent with a temporary shelter, enough for it to dry its fur at least. Secured underneath its rotting wooden sanctuary, the shrew shook its body, splashing tiny droplets of water around, trying to dry itself, oblivious of the danger as the wall supporting the rotting giant started to c***k. A bolt of lightning lit the sky ablaze with a thunderous roar, making the rodent raised its head, surveying its surrounding. The cracking sounds were loud and close, signaling that the wall could hold no longer, but as the shrew put its front legs down to run, it was already too late. The concrete wall collapsed, crushed by the weight of the dead tree, the thing that the rodent thought would aid it. The unfortunate  creature screeched, terrified of what has just happened, the banyan tree's rotting, hollowed trunk has trapped it underneath it, its left leg caught under a large chunk of masonry, causing the distressed animal to cried out in agony as it tried to claw its way out of stones and wood. Before long, the shrew was exhausted, as it was trying to catch its breaths, its eyes looked around frantically in the dark as it felt the rising rainwater threatening to drown it in the crater created by the collapsing wall. Suddenly the footsteps of something large stilled the shrew, accompanied by a faint smell of rotting leaves and fungi. The sound and smell approached, closer and closer, until the footsteps stopped, directly in front of the fallen tree where the shrew is trapped underneath. The shrew tried laying motionless, save for the frantic movements of its ribs and its eyes, still darting around from one dark corner to another, trying to search for any way to escape. Then, all of the sudden, the rotting trunk shook and splintered, ripped apart by powerful claws, making the insects that have made their home inside its corpse fell out or scattered into the air. The shrew looked on, as if bedazzled by its rescuer's peculiar appearance, its trapped limb became all but nonexistence in its mind. What stood in front of the rodent now could only be described as a walking bush, branches, feathers and other materials all weaved and bound together with vines, making it looked like the shaggy coat of a weasel in the midst of winter. Underneath all of that, the shrew could make out patches of leathery brown skins stitched together in a hideous parody of a hide, puncturing holes and cuts littered what it thought was the creature's chest. Small, lichens covered branches and vines hung loosely from its shrouded head, mimicking the mane of a very old bison, as it moved, so too did the vines and branches, swaying with every motion the creature made. After a while, as if assessing the situation, "the Bush" reached out to the shrew with its long, grey arm, covered with strange patterns resembling vines with sharp turns from its forearm presumably up to its shoulder. Long, clawed fingers touched the chunk of cement, pushing it away with effortless ease while another hand caught the rodent in its gentle grab. The shrew struggled with its remaining three good limbs as "the Bush" brought it nearer to its face. The strange creature tilted its head slightly, seemingly amused by the struggling rodent as another flash of lightning lit the sky, illuminating the human-like face underneath, its amber eyes glowed for a second before fading into the darkness of its cloak. The rodent's breathing slowed, its small nose sniffed the air, reaching nearer to the creature's face, it could see under the shadow were a maw lined with daggers like teeth, slowing opening with trails of drools falling down from the slits. The poor animal didn't even have the chance to react as "the Bush" opened its maw and tossed the rodent in, sinking its teeth down to the squeaking animal before tilting its head back to swallow its whole. Wiping bits of blood and flesh from its lips, the strange creature turned around and walked back into the deep forest, loosely hung branches from its cloak plowed through three-fingered footprints and the trail left behind by its long tail. Continuing its lonely patrol, the creature's shape slowly faded into the shadow of the canopies, soon only faint footsteps could be heard traveling further and further until that too melded into the sounds of rains. *** The undergrowth was disturbed as the young boy ran for his life through the ruins, intertwining branches and his leather cloak were the only things that have been keeping him from being wet. Well, at least not soaking anyway. Clutched tight against his throbbing chest by pale, skinny arms was a leather bound journal, the cursed object was the reason for his problem. He cursed in his head, cursing at the journal, at the rain, at himself, yet bitter as he was, he couldn’t let go of the thing that’s brought him here, he couldn’t afford to. The boy clenched his teeth as he fought back the urge to scream, journal or not, it makes no different now, he can only run for his life. Small feet wrapped in footwear made from leather and straw splashed as each stumbling footsteps landed into the puddles, coming to an almost screeching halt at a crossroad. Panicked violet eyes opened wide, gleaming from under the hood as they darted from one direction to another, unsure of which way to go as his pursuers were fast on his trail. Stomping frantically on the same spot as he looked around, his mind tied to a knot with messy memories of the way back to his village. This time he has gone too far inland, too far from the trails and even from the familiar hunting grounds where he's forbidden to go to. The spine-chilling howl echoed from behind the boy, followed by a series of clicks and growls, along with hasty footsteps pounding onto the soaked forest floor. - They're coming! They're coming! - He hissed under his breath. - What to do? What to do? Think Haru. Think! A large patch of purple moss caught his eyes, sparse growths sprouting from the web-like roots of great banyan trees growing along the river, their exposed barks covered in a snowy white sheet of fungus, the sight forced a bitter smile onto the boy’s lips, as he knew full well what they are. He remembered what the elders have said about them in lectures for the other children that he’s eavesdropped from outside, forbidden to attend himself. He remembered them warning the children of the herbs and mushrooms of peculiar colors in the jungles and forests, especially the type of moss with vibrant violet coloration growing from white fungi that even wild beasts would avoid. Maybe that’s why they hated and were so afraid of him? The boy thought as he trotted toward the tree to inspect it for a hiding place. The trees hung above the rivers, years of erosions have carved away the ruined wall that once must have altered the flow of the river itself, leaving fully half of their roots to plunge into the water and the riverbed below. Wooden serpents dug deep into the cracked concretes, overlapping and entangling each other over the riverbank, loosening chunks of hard rocks for the river to carry away, leaving behind large hollows perfect for hiding. But the rain has filled the river, and the lowers hovels and grottos have been submerged under the murky water, leaving only small entrances into the network of cracks and root tunnels. There’s no other option, Haru thought as he rushed at the patches of violet moss that have always been told to carry sickness with them, yet between being mauled to death and suffering through a mild fever, he’d gladly choose the later. Keen eyes the color of pure amethyst caught glimpses of white caps licking at the edge of the river bank before disappearing into the water below, heavy rains caused the water level to rise, threatening to overflow at any moment, he’s almost out of time, the thought seized his heart in its painful clutch. The teen shook his head to clear his head and wiping the tears from his eyes, no, he thought, there are still some grottos he could hide in, he’s seen things like this before, he just need to find it. And there it was, a tree growing on top of a sunken house of rock, nearly all of the building’s bulk has been submerged, yet the crumbled top floor draping with moss-covered root could still provide a decent hiding place. Choosing an entrance that's just big enough for him, Haru snuck his way deep into the darkness peppered with faint rays of light. The boy crawled through roots, avoiding chunks of broken cement, heart pounding loudly when the footsteps and hissing from before stopped at the river. Three shadows appeared just above him, from the middle of the gaps, he could see the soaking wet black fur with a long, reptilian tail wagged slowly from side to side as the creature sniffed the air. A three-fingered hand curved into a tree root in front of Haru, making him held his breath, his hand quickly covering his mouth to keep in a terrified gasp as the long, slender muzzle of the animal pressed against the moss and began to sniff. Tears trailed down his yet face from shaky violet eyes, opening so wide and for so long that it burnt, yet Haru couldn’t tear his gaze from the thing he’s seeing. It has the body frame of a dog, yet its features were unlike any dog the boy has ever seen. Slender yet muscular long limps pressed firmly onto the roots, making the smell of moss even more unbearable. Each of its feet was three, bird-like fingers, long and scaly, tipped with curved, sharp talons that would rip apart any kind of protection. Their heads were devoid of fur, white and smooth except for two black patches of skin around the eyes that gave them their skull-like appearance which gave them their name, the skull hounds. Two long ears resemble those of rabbits' perched upward, catching every little sound of their would-be prey that they knew were hiding somewhere. Horrified, he closed his violet eyes, Haru listened to his heart pounding, so loudly that he almost thought that it was readied to jump out of his chest. He began to recite the prayers in his head, secretly hoping the water and the smells of the moss have disguised his owns. Short, almost gagging sounding pants could be heard from the beasts outside as they survey the place, rain pouring down on their wretched hides, making drools, sweats and dirt dripping from their furs down into the boy’s hiding place, filling it with their smell. The stench was putrid, bitter like a tar pit, searing his eyes and nose, making them watery, but Haru kept silent, staying motionless as best he could, yet the cold and the fear made sitting still a impossible task. He pulled his legs into his chest, slowly, carefully as not to disturb the predators above, hoping against hope that those creatures would go away soon. After a few more heartbeats, as if couldn't bear the smell of moss any longer, the beast gagged and turned away, tail whipping to signal the other two to follow, back into the forest. Inside his hiding place, Haru froze, eyes still glued to where the beast has poked its snout through. Were they really gone? He wondered, relinquishing his hands’ grasps from his mouth and nose, allowing them to take it deep shuddering breaths, just to cough and gagged into his own hands from the smell. With his heart still thumping loudly and his throat still burning, the boy peeked out from a hole, trying to survey his surrounding, making sure that the beasts have gone. One minute, two minutes, nothing, aside from the overflowing river, the rustling of leaves and his breathing, there was no other sounds, but he has to make sure. A good half an hour passed before Haru decided to get crawl of the rubbles, the front pages of his journal now soaking wet despite his best attempt to keep it from hitting the water. There was nothing he could do, the boy told himself as he looked at the lower tunnel, now beginning to flood with the overflowing of the river. Letting out a sigh, half of relief and half of regret, Haru looked up, searching for the sun to navigate his way back. Although the rain has not stopped, it wasn't as much as a downpour as before anymore, a weak ray of sunlight pierced through the dark clouds just a few minutes before being obscured. - It’s midday already… - Haru sighed in defeat, his voice soft and quiet, he has planned to use the sun to navigate, but now he was left with no choice, he have to use “it”. He reached into his coat's pocket and took out a well-wrapped leather pouch, inside the pouch was a black, ground box the size of his palm. With his slender fingers marked with small, faint scars, the boy gently opened the lid of the box and miraculously, it stood still without a stick or anything holding it from collapsing. Inside the box is a layer of transparent layer as hard as stone with two straight lines superimposed on each other horizontally, each ends of the line marked with a precise drawing. The top of which were two parallel sticks connected by another sharply angled one, the head of a trident lied on the right, a curved snake guarded the left and the bottom was a pair of dog canines. Slightly moving under the glass was an arrow, his saving grace, pointing just shy of the drawing of the snake. Slowly, Haru held the relic from side to side, eyes glued to the arrow changing direction each time he moved it, until it’s set directly on the trident, the direction of his village. Taking a lung full of dampened air mixed with the smell of moss, Haru closed his eyes to offer some prayers to the ancestors, asking them to bless him before starting his journey back home. Taking back whatever amount of courage he's gathered, the boy began to walk in the direction of the arrow, into the forest, not noticing the six pairs of eyes watching him from far away from their concealed ambush. Slender wrists pushed away handing vines and outstretched branches as the teen stepped through the forest floor, his grass footwear soaked with water, rubbing against his feet and made them itch. Ignoring the annoying sensations, Haru continued walking deeper and deeper into the forest, somewhat sheltered from the rain by the high foliage. Centuries of continuous rains punctured by harsh winters have transformed these ruins, the "cities" of the Old Ones, into a graveyard filled with life, making it hard for one not to move without touching a leave of a vine from low hanging branches. The thickness of the forest makes him feel cramped, as if the air was a thick, sticky subtenant, suffocating and muffling everything under the canopies. Thousands of sounds poured into his ears like invisible rivers, even the sounds of his own footsteps could not be heard anymore. So stagnated was the air that everything seemed melded into one, messy mass of sounds and smells that threatens to devour anything and everything that dared to enter the forest's dark bowel. Haru sighed, all he wanted was to draw the ruins of an ancient world and submerge himself the fantasy realm that his mind has made up, and he has gone too far. Now he's trapped, inside a maze of trees and the surrounded by the sounds of beasts and he has no way to get help. His wide, violet eyes glanced around as he picked up the pace in a vain attempt, he wanted to see the sky, not the leaf-covered arms of the forest that shrouded all that were above. The warm, moist atmosphere of undergrowth littered with puddles choked his lungs and drown his minds with horrible visions of his own death, made worse by his tears blurring his eyes. After running non-stop for what seemed like half an eternity between wet trunks and vines, Haru collapsed against the side of an old tree, catching his breaths while cursing himself for his foolishness for wanting to come out here. He suddenly felt the hair on his neck stood up, the low growling and slow footsteps on the puddles were coming from behind. Haru immediately jerked his head aside, narrowly dodging a snap of one of the animals from earlier, its bald, lizard-like jaws snapping only inches from his ear. The predator staggered from its missed attack, three-fingered hands clung to the ground as it shook its black fur-covered body, throwing water off its back and hissed, signaling the other two to engage. One of the other two growled, letting out a barrage of clicking sounds, it crouched down and prepared to pounce. The beast recoiled, powerful muscles writhed under wet fur as it prepared before springing at Haru. The boy closed his eyes shut, preparing for the sensation of claws hooking into his flesh. The powerful screeched was cut short, transformed into a surprised and painful yelp as if caught by another animal. Silence befell the scene, not a sound was made except the echoing flaps of panicked birds from the distance and the dropping of water from the high canopies onto the soaked forest floor. What has happened? Haru asked himself as he waited for something to touch his skin, but it never came, the air around him was still, serene, devoid of all motions, as if time itself has stopped for all but himself. After what seemed like a solid ten minutes, the boy decided to take a risk and opened his eyes. The first thing he saw that the gaping maw of his pursuer, filled to the brim with needle-like teeth, stuck to a bald white head that resembled that of a stork but with a nose of a dog. Haru jumped backward, his vision faded into a horrific blackness as he let out a muffled squeal, but quickly realized that it was unnecessary. The hound was pinned down by its shoulder and the neck, a powerful foot of a massive bird of prey has reached out from a bush nearby, stomping down on it and pressing the animal into the muck. Three wicked talons coiled around the skull hound's shoulder, while a larger, sickle-like big toe sunk into its flesh and drew blood. The second hound chirped as it rushed toward “the Bush” in an attempt to rescue its kin, its fangs flashing like miniature daggers. A clawed hand reached out from under the cloak of branches and leaves, seizing the beast by its throat, causing the beast to shriek in terror and clawed at the pale forearm covered in strange tattoos, its claws bouncing off the creature’s skin harmlessly. The thing tilted its head in amusement, before suddenly turning, its arm coiled back then swung in a wide arch, flinging the skull hound across the forest and hitting the remaining beast, sending both of them tumbling into the undergrowth. The teen watched while the hounds yelped and retreated in the dense forest, leaving their comrade under the talons of the creature. The beast groaned in defeat and laid still, only responded when white talons hooked to its skin making it bleed, flowing down into the dampened fur and dying a puddle of water with crimson red. The creature tilted its head, bloodied talons dug deeper, causing the animal under its feet to struggle and hiss. The hound raised its head, snapping the air with its toothy maw, trying to bite its attacker, only to get punished with talons digging deeper. - Stop! - Haru finally found his courage to speak up. "The Bush" stopped and turned to look at him, so confidence was the beast that it didn't even bother to hide its puzzled expression in every gesture it makes. Tilting its head curiously, it pressed its talons deeper into the bloody hide of the hound. - Stop! I said stop it! - Haru screamed again, much to the creature's delight. As if aware of his feelings, and quite amused by them, "the Bush" pressed on the animal with its talons, causing it to scream again. The human kept screaming, "the Bush" kept on torturing while the poor animal stayed still in pain and exhaustion, its fur was all but torn off, revealing a layer of brown skin underneath with blood pouring from gaping wounds. Haru began to feel frustrated, he felt like his lungs would burst from the shouting. With his hands on his knees, he gasped for air, trying to regain his strength, sweats dripping down his face and falling onto the puddles below. Khu. Khu. Khu. Deep laughter rumbled from "the Bush", its shoulders shook slightly while its head drooped down a bit lower. Haru glued his attention to the strange creature in front of him, a series of thoughts flashed through his head as the creature laughed. He did not know what it was, nor did he know if it understood what he was talking, but he was sure it was amused. The laughter stopped as suddenly as it's began, what followed was a voice belonging to a man in his twenties coming from under the cloak of stitched up branches and vines: - Hey kid, what's your name? - W-Wh-Wha... - The stuttering escaped Haru's shaking mouth. Trying to swallow down his fear with a gulp, he replied in a trembling tone: - W-what? - "What"? - "The Bush" tilted his head in amusement as he replied. - That's a rather strange name. - N-no! - Haru shook his head, choking both on his breaths and his words as he tried to push out a full sentence. - M-m-my n-na-nam-name i-i-is H-Ha-Ha...Haru! - Haru eh? - The creature turned his attention down to his prey and stomped with his clawed foot. - Stop! I said stop! - Haru screeched, his leg automatically took a step, causing low branches to tear at his already worn cloak. - Why? - "The Bush" asked with an amused tone as he kept his raptorial foot on the poor skull hound half driven mad with pain. - Let it go! It's in enough pain already! - Haru yelled again, his violet eyes became teary. He clenched his lips, trying to keep his composure but his voice grew louder with every word escaping his lips. - I don't want to see it in pain like that! As if the boy's voice has touched his heart, "the Bush" lifted his foot, letting the hound slip away, blood dripping from the wounds on its side as it skulked into the dense undergrowth, letting out painful grunts. The bush's shoulders began to shake as the laughter began again, this time louder, making insects that have used the cloaked of stitched up materials to take off or fall to the forest floor. The laughter became louder and louder, sending chills down Haru's spines and animals fleeing from nearby trees. - Haru, I like you! - The creature said between laughter, leaves and branches falling from its back as it reached his hand up to his shaking head. - I can't believe there are still people like you here! "Don't want to see it in pain"? Ridiculous! Absolutely ridiculous! The laughter kept getting louder and louder, echoing across the forest, sending every single animal in a kilometer radius scurrying in terror. Haru's fear quickly disappeared, replaced by embarrassment as the laughter cut into his fragile confidence, heating up his face more and more. "What's wrong with not wanting anything to be in pain?" He wondered, his face turning red from nose to mouth. Seeing that scene, the other creature burst out another laughter that made the boy just wants to crawl into the nearest pit and bury himself there. - Stop it! What's wrong with being kind?! - Haru yelled, hands tightened into fists as he walked toward the bush. - Only inhuman things like you would... Haru felled to the wet ground after receiving a slap from the creature, it was lucky that he used the back of his hand, otherwise Haru's face would have been torn by the sharp claws at the tip of each finger. He crawled backward until hitting a tree, rubbing his reddened cheek while sobbing silently with only small yelped escaping his shut lips. But much to his terror, "the Bush" advanced, raptorial feet covered in grey scales appeared and disappeared simultaneously under his cloak of branches and leaves. His quick and agile movements caused the vines to unravel, sending bits of material to the ground before being crushed under the creature's furious footsteps. They tangled into low hanging branches, ripping apart the layer of rotting woods and leaves, revealing underneath a cloak of stitched up leather. A tattoos covered arm reached out, grabbing Haru by his head as the creature knelt down to meet Haru’s terrified eyes shining through strands of loosened snowy white hair. There was a human face underneath the shadow of the creature's hood, the face of the young man, hardly over twenty-five, though pale and slightly sunken, he's still quite...attractive, if not handsome. The same could not be said about his teeth however, for as his lips curved up into a grinning smile, Haru could see white, blade-like fangs glistening, reflecting whatever light that was able to reach down through the thick canopies. His amber eyes sparked, possibly glowing in the dimmed lighting, almost hypnotizing if it was for the fact that they were filled with anger. As the creature, the man, moved his face closer to Haru's, he could see there was something akin to a snake moving underneath the cloak when he asked with a quiet voice, filled with unmistakable amusement yet with no short amount of seriousness: - What do you know about "kindness"? - I-I... - Haru stuttered, confused and terrified by the man's aggressive behaviors. - “Kindness”, you say? - The man whispered, getting closer to Haru’s face as he began to sniff at his head, pushing off the hood’s covering the boy’s head, letting his untied snowy white hair to cascade down his nape. - You’re one of them. - The man gasped quietly as he blurted out the words, unblinking amber eyes staring at Haru, before flinching a bit, as if realizing he’s misspoke. - From Ayari village. - Y-yes? So what? - Haru asked cautiously, his heart wrenched a bit as the stranger acknowledged his village, more so when he noticed that the man’s shifting his gaze from his eyes to his hair. - Nothing in particular. - The older male replied, narrowing his eyes before slowly standing up, the playful expression suddenly replaced by that of puzzling and seriousness as he turned his head to one side. - I know a short cut, I can take you there.