His deadly stare is enough to freeze me in place! I can't move a single muscle, for I can feel if I do, it will be the end of me. He then slowly points an object under my neck as he sneers at me, I can feel the object is sharp. To the beast's left side, another giant is standing. He tilted his head toward the left and observed us like a third party. He appears to be very calm.
"Wait!" Galiteeya shouts, "He's not...." Then she gets cut off.
I try to turn toward Galiteeya, but the beast presses the sharp object a bit harder.
"Grrrr. Don't move... Grrr," said the beast while sneering and growling.
I do what he commands, out of fear rather. Why is he so hostel?
"Oh, Galiteeya! We've been looking all over for you! Why did you go off on your own again?" Said the female voice, now coming from Galiteeya's direction. I also hear two metals rubbing against each other...
"Ouch! Hailiga! Stop! We're in public. Everyone can see us!" Galiteeya responded to that voice rather in a shy way.
Ok, what are they doing?
"So, is he the one who was flying like crazy in the sanctuary hall?" *Gasp!* "He's the same pervert you showed in your body camera!" The female voice shouts. "Alkerion! He's the one who defiles our Galiteeya! Take him out!"
At that command, I look back at the beast and notice his cold reptile-like eyes, filled with determination to carry out the command with a cold grin on his face.
"Grrr with pleasurrrre" *Growls* Said the beast.
Just when I think it's over, Galiteeya shouts, "I said wait! We have worked our issue out! There was a misunderstanding!"
"Hm? You sure?" The female voice replies.
"Yes, I am. Alkerion, Stand down! He is no threat, and I was wrong about him," Galiteeya explains.
The beast, who has stopped growling and appears less aggressive, still gives me cold death glares. "My liege, are you certain? Even though he has defiled you, will you still show mercy? My liege, you are too kind sometimes."
"Alkerion. No, he did not. It was an accident. Stand down and let me explain," Galiteeya demands.
The beast stares at me coldly for a moment, finally draws back his weapon, and closes his eyes, "Your wish is my command, my liege." Then he steps back. The sharp object disappeared into thin air before I could tell what it was.
I relax a bit once as the situation deescalates. Then I hear someone chewing something. I turn my head toward the sound and find the second beast who is watching is holding a bag and eating some food out of it. Why does he look like he's watching a movie? Wait before that. Who are these guys?
I look back at Galiteeya and see her explaining how we got to this point. I took this chance to observe them properly. The beast that wanted to kill me. Looking at him from the side, He has a crocodile-like face and skin, his chin is shorter than a crocodile's, and his teeth aren't showing. The color of his skin is eggplant purple. On top of his head, he has two horns coming out of the top sides of his head. The sharp head of the horn bends forward, making it look like an upside-down italic L. Between the horns, he has short mohawk-like hair. His ears look like a fin of a fish, except it is made of smooth crocodile skin. His eyes sclera is yellow with lime green snake-like hexagram shape pupil, though the vertical ends seem to be twice as long as the other points of his eyes. From the sides of his lower jaws, another pair of horns stick out and face forward, except this pair is shorter than the top pair and looks like a flipped J. Right before it hides behind his suit collar, the skin color changes from his nick change to Lemon Yellow. His suit is shiny black, giving it a metallic look. He seems to have a white pattern that goes from his chest toward his shoulders and then to his back. The pattern looks like lightning flashes. The suit looks more like heavy armor. As I pay closer attention, it's covered with scratches and dents. One of the shoulder pads is wider and taller than the other one, for if I look at him from the other side, I cannot see his neck and the lower portion of his face. From the shoulder pad that I can see, I notice a symbol. The symbol is made similarly to what Galiteeya has on her chest. The symbol is not the same as Galiteeya's. He looks like a beast with wings from the sideway, holding a spear, and a star is above its wings. By the shape of his armor, I can tell he's muscular. His hands are armored by his suit as well, and he has three fingers and a thumb.
By now, I am used to strange beings... but this one's stranger. Are those actual wings? From the back side of his shoulder, I noticed a pair of wings hanging, almost as tall as he is, but I can't tell how wide they are, for they are close. His suit isn't covering his wings. He has bat-shaped wings with eggplant purple outer skin behind his wings and lemon yellow on the inner skin inside his wings. He also has a tail that splits into two heads at its end. His armor also covers his tale, but what is his armor made of? The material seems metallic but is flexible enough for his tail to move around freely. Overall, he looks like a walking dragon! I hope he doesn't actually breathe out fire!
He seems close to Galiteeya. Are they a couple? But the way he is standing does not look as close as a romantic couple would. He is keeping his space at arm's length and standing like he is paying attention to his superior. Come to think of it. He addressed Galiteeya as 'my liege.' Wait, why am I even thinking of that?
Between him and Galiteeya is the source of the female voice. The way how she's interacting with Galiteeya, however, differs completely from the dragon dude. Her voice sounds like a singer humming in a low mellow. She seems to have a soft tone as well. She is practically clinging to Galiteeya's arm like a baby koala bear and rubbing her cheek on Galatia's shoulder. She is short, roughly about 3/4th of Galiteeya's height. Now that I think about it, Galiteeya seems to be around my height, so how tall am I? Another aspect I have forgotten about is myself.
Observing the new female companion, her body type seems to be like Dr. Rosita, except she doesn't seem to be like a plant. The first thing that I notice is her hair. Her hair is aqua blue and is short compared to Galatia's hair. Her hair cuts short just below her ears, but she has a twin-tale style bundle that falls from the back corners of her head to the back of her neck. I catch a glimpse of the top corner of her ear. It looks like the dragon dude's ear, except it looks more like a fish's fin than a reptile's. She has a face of a human with a baby face. Her skin color is navy blue, with her cheeks hinting purple, and she reflects neon ping glimmers from the light. Her skin looks smooth as well. She stops rubbing her cheek and stands on her two feet, but she keeps squishing her cheek on Galiteeya's cheek and looks at me with one eye. Her eye looks human, too, except her pupil is aqua blue as well, and she also has long aqua blue eyelashes. I notice that on both sides of her neck, there are two distinct horizontal lines with a hint of pink on each side, making it look like a shark's gale. She is wearing a neon pink suit with navy blue straps crossing her suit. Overall, her suit is like Galiteeya's, except she doesn't seem to have built-in wings, but she looks like she has something on her back. I can't see what it is as she is facing me. Her suit is very lightly armored. She, too, has a similar symbol on her chess as her companion's symbol, but in this one, a beast with a fishtail wrapped around itself and aiming a bow at a star. Her hands, arms, and legs look human, too. She seems to have four fingers and a thumb on each hand. I noticed out of this group, she and Galiteeya are the only ones who look human. Well, Galiteeya is practically the closest to human in terms of looks... compared to her companions if it was not for her ears.
"What do you think you are staring at?" Galiteeya's friend is shouting at me while rubbing her cheeks.
I quickly subconsciously averted my gaze to the side on my left "N...Nothing," I mumbled.
Wait....what did I turn away for? I wasn't staring with ill intention! And what kind of a sorry-looking answer did I give?
I try to revert my gaze back and answer properly, but a shadow looms from the right, and immediately a beast figure comes into my view, blocking the pair of ladies. This grabs the attention of the dragon dude, but that's the least of my problem. This beast is the same one that is still enjoying his snack while watching us... But he was just behind me! How did he get there so fast without making a sound? The beast is eating comparatively slower than before. He isn't facing me either, but looking at me silently from the corner of his eyes. He tilted his head towards Galiteeya as if paying attention to their conversation but keeping his eye on me simultaneously. His stature seems laid back and calm, and he isn't showing any expressions. He is simply watching. Yet, just for a fleeting moment, I felt a cold air from him that rivals the dragon beast's killing intent. Although it wasn't a killing intent... I'm not sure what it was, but it was dangerous. That cold air disappeared as soon as it appeared simultaneously...was it even from him?
His face looks more like a dolphin's face. He has no hair but two fins sticking out from the top of his head. He has two horns that come out just above his forehead, in front of the fin, and the horn grows out and goes around his head. The two horns almost touch each other behind his head, making it look like he's wearing a halo. His eyes look like a human eye with ocean-blue pupils. On the place where his ears should be, his skin makes a halo shape form with a small hole in the middle, and I also notice a bigger hole behind his neck. His skin reflects a blue shine from the light, but without the light, it looks like dark blue. The blue you'd see when the sun set for the day. From his chin down to his nick, I see the light grey skin pattern that looks like water wave marks, which seems to continue beneath his suit. His skin looks smooth and rubbery. His body type is big and muscular, similar to the dragon beast, but his suit looks less armory. He doesn't have those big shoulder pads. He seems to use wings that are made from his suit, and he has three on each side. He seems to have three fins on his back, the middle being the largest and the tallest. Those wings come from the sides of his fins where they meet his back. All three wings have a V shape to them. I notice on each wing tip and below the back of his wings have a pentagon shape engine with a white burst emitting out of them. His suit color also matches his skin, making it almost look like he is naked, but the white wavy pattern from his back to his chest gives it away, and it looks metallic. The horned dolphin beast has muscly arms and hands, and his hands each have four fingers and a thumb, just like a human does. He seems to have three tails, and each of those the tails ends looks like a tail of a whale. He, too, has a similar symbol as his companions do, but he is on the side of his middle back fin. In his symbol, it looks like a beast crossing his arms in front of his chest in an X shape and holding some blade in each hand, and a star is above his head. What do these symbols mean? Who are they exactly?
I notice that their suits, although each is different, all have the same basic functions as Galiteeya's suit. They all have engines and circuits all over their suits, though they are all in different locations based on the size and shape of their bodies.
"Fourty-Two?" I whisper
"What is it?" He answers through my headset.
"Do you know who they are?"
"Well, they are rangers!"
"I figured that much! But who are they specifically?"
Fouty-Two is quiet for a bit, then he responds, "Strange, I can't find much on their records. Are they new Rangers? I can usually pull more info."
"Rangers can be looked up?"
"Yes! Many rangers are like celebrities, and people look up to them as front-line explorers and people capable of doing the impossible! Especially if they are in higher leagues and ranks."
"leagues and rank?"
"Yes, Leagues are determined by tournaments, duals, or by completing arduous tasks and missions. Ranks are determined by their reputation and talents. Usually, I can find this info on most rangers. The only ones that aren't found are the ones that are staying low, new, or are from private Ranger association....," 42 explains. "Huh.."
"What is it?" I whisper.
"Now that I analyze my explanation, they can't be new, not if they are on here roaming freely, so they are either keeping a low profile or are simply members of private rangers association."
At that moment, the female bursts out laughing, which brings me out of my dilemma.
"Oh, Galiteeya! This is why I love you so much! So he can't fly without his guide because he can't channel his thought? Hahaha! And you felt bad for him, didn't you? Aww, yes, you did! You always have a soft spot for people with a disability!"
Her words felt like they were kicking me in the stomach. She sounds like she's talking to a cute little pet that she adores, but that's not the issue! Did she just label me disabled? I guess I am now, but it's not like it's set in stone yet!
"Hailiga! Stop! This is so embarrassing. Everyone is watching!" Said Galiteeya with a shaky voice.
"Who cares! They should be honored to see people like us!"
*Sigh* "You always throw discipline out of the window," said the dragon beast. He is shaking his head, looking down with his eyes close. Then he has his arms crossed and holds his forehead with one hand as if his head is hurting.
"Bah! Stop being such a snob! This wouldn't have happened if you'd gone to the infirmary with her!" The female voice snaps back... So her name is Haili...what?
*Kekekekeke* this noise came out from the dolphin beast.
Is he laughing? He seems to have opened another snack and munching on it happily. Where does he get all those snacks from? Either way, he seems to enjoy this show!
"Hey! Oleiga! Move your butt! And stop eating like a fat animal!" The female voice yells.
At that, the happy dolphin face took a long step backward, revealing the small lady dragging Galiteeya while clinching her arm towards me. As she passes by her dolphin companion, I catch him sticking out his tongue towards her for a brief moment as she passes him and then follows her lead towards me. Soon after, the dragon dude follows them as well. At that sight, I tense up. Then I see Galiteeya's face turning red like a fresh strawberry, and she is trying to cover her face with one hand. They gather around me.
"So! Your, that infamous pervert who has touched our Galiteeya! Huh? Little flyboy!" The new female said with a grin on her face. "I bet you still want to grab and feel these bad girls!"
She then goes behind Galiteeya, pretending to grab her chest from behind, and squeezes the air in front of her breasts! With her eyes squinting and a wide grin on her face!
"Oh, my!" Fourty-Two announces through my headphone.
My mouth is wide open from the shock, and I am taken back as a step, one foot back.
"AHH! Hailiga! Stop it!" Galiteeya yells while trying to get loose from the small lady.
I notice the dolphin beast starts eating his snack faster, and he is intensely focusing on the display. The dragon dude smacks his face and shakes his head once more, only this time, he's looking up in disbelief. "Oh, great.. now everyone will gather here." He whispers.
At that remark, I quickly glance around my surroundings and notice people are already gathering and mumbling amongst themselves. I panic and open my arms wide open I quickly try to think of something to block the view, so I make my wings wider and longer from my suit.
"Huh? Pfff, BAHAHAHA!" The small lady burst out laughing again.
With that, Galiteeya finally gets loose.
"What are you doing? Can't you see we are making a scene here!" Galiteeya yells while garbing the small lady's collar in an attempt to punch her.
The lady raises both hands while still laughing; she's laughing so hard that her entire face turns dark purple from navy blue. "B... but pff! Just look at him! His face is so red! HAHAHA! I had never seen a human so red! He's matching you! HAHA!" She said.
"Aww, look at him. He's even trying to block the view for you! HAHA!" She continues, "I think you got another one falling for you!"
I felt my cheeks turning hot real quick. The dolphin beast is also laughing at me while eating another batch of snacks. The dragon beast seems to be numb by this, but I also notice that he is trying to block the views from his side by widely opening his wings. His wings are huge! Each is twice the size that he is! It's big enough to cover half of the side, including the top!
*WHAM* The new short female drops to the floor after a punch in the stomach by Galiteeya! The punch is so hard that a shock wave came out from the impact, and I even felt the wind. The dolphin beast makes a bell sound like someone got knocked out in a boxing match *Ding! Ding! Ding!* With that, Galiteeya faces me, leaving the lady curled up on the floor, gasping for air. Her skin turns eggplant purple. Galiteeya looks at me momentarily with teary eyes, then closes them. Galiteeya takes a few deep breaths and calms herself. Her face's color return to normal, but her cheeks are still between pink to red. She lets loose the arm that punched her companion, holds it with her hand, and looks down.
"I'm... Sorry for my friends. They aren't usually like this. They just...." Galiteeya stops mid-sentence and is deep in thought.
At that moment, I try to calm myself down, but my damn heart is beating like a Gatling gun.
"They are just overprotective at times." Galiteeya finally finishes her sentence.
She is looking down with a better sweet look on her face, a sad smile. I look behind her and watch her two male companions gather around the one that's on the floor. The dragon dude is standing to the left of the struggling lady, looking down at her and shaking his head. The dolphin beast is to the fallen companion's right, sitting on his knees and poking her cheek. As for the lady on the floor, she is still gasping for air with her eyes shut, with a hint of tears, but at the same time, she looks annoyed at her companion poking her. I give out a light chuckle at the scene.
"You guys seem close. Must have been through a lot." I reply
Galiteeya looked up at me, seemingly surprised at my comment, then she smiled and said, "Yes, yes, we have!"
She seems slightly down, so I ask, "Would you like to tell me more about them?"
Galiteeya looks at me for a bit with an odd expression. I can't quite read her. Then she chuckles and says, "Sure! Wait, I haven't properly introduced them to you, haven't I?" She then turns around and points at the dolphin beast. "He's Oleiga. As you can see, he is very playful and prefers not to take things too seriously. He doesn't talk often but is very reliable when you need him."
She then points to her middle companion on the floor. "The one in the middle is Hailiga. She is brutally honest and says what's on her mind. She doesn't get along well when meeting someone new, but at heart, she is kind and sometimes even sweet. Both Oleiga and Hailiga are from the same region".
Then she points at the dragon dude. "He is Alkerion. He is very strict and goes by the book. He is also very disciplined. He comes from a strict family, and people usually avoid him, and his scary look doesn't help; however, he is very loyal and honest."
*Cough cough gasp* "Galiteeya!" *Gasp* "I'm... sorry.." *Cough cough* Hailiga said while struggling to stand up.
"You had it coming, Hailiga," Alkerion said. "You should know by now how my liege can be!"
*Kekekekeke* Oleiga is still laughing at Hailiga and poking her in the face.
Alkerion walks over to us and glances at me momentarily, then turns to Galiteeya. "My liege, we have to go. The Moricse sisters are waiting for us."
"Right! Let's stop at the infirmary first, and I may have gone overboard on Hailiga." Galiteeya replies.
Alkerion nods and turns back to relay the message to the other two, but he gives me a last glance before returning. I am definitely not on his like list!
Galiteeya turns to me: "Well! I have to go. Should you need any more help, ask your guide".
I nodded to her and said, "I understand, and I apologize for causing you any inconvenience," Then I bowed.
"Not at all! Thank you!" She said she gave me a quick wave and flew off towards another portal on the right side.
Alkerion immediately follows her lead. Then Oleiga picks up Hailiga bridal style and looks at me.
*Cough* "Hey! Put me down! I can go on my own!" Hailiga said, hitting Oleiga's chest. Her skin color once again is back to navy blue, but her cheeks are purple.
Despite that, Oleiga opens his three sets of wings while staring at me with a rather serious expression. That sends chills down my spine, for he wasn't like that just a moment ago. He then looks up and takes off with Hailiga. Going after his other two companions.
"Well, that was a lively encounter!" Forty-two said.
"You could say that.." I respond
"Hehehe though, I doubt you'll see them again, but if you do... I highly recommend watching your back!"
"Sure..."
Looking at them as they are leaving through one of the portals. Their relationship left me down. For a moment, I envy them, and I felt lonely. Why? Then at that moment, Klaus came to my mind.
"I guess I miss him.. even though I don't remember him well, he must've been one hell of a dude," I mumble to myself.
"Who?" Fourty-Two asks.
"Never mind"
The crowd had gotten bigger, but those around us were going back to whatever they were doing one by one. I start to walk towards the giant window in front of me in the distance.
"So what's next?" I ask.
"Well, we'll wait in this hall. The time of departure is drawing near." Fourty-Two replies.
**To be Continued*