Elias laughs as they run through the tall grass, pushing pieces aside so they don't hit him in the face. At some point in the grass, they both run out of breath and Eli leans over, hands on his knees, tears in his eyes from laughing so much. He looks up and looks at Ace as he disappears into the grass.
"Hey! Ace!"
He yelled before walking after him. A few feet ahead he emerged into a clearing. Ace stood several feet ahead with a whistle up to his lips. Eli watched, a little confused, but as soon as he heard the steps of the Kharaneae behind him, he remembered what the whistle was for. Ace grabbed his hand and pulled him closer so he could look at the Kharaneae. The giant creature stood taller than four grown men stacked atop each other. Its skin looked exactly like it looked in Elias' dream, except for minor differences. Each Kharaneae has a different pattern on their body though. Eli stared at the strange but familiar creature standing before them.
"This is my Kharaneae. Her name is Delmira."
"Delmira..."
Elias repeated, taking a step closer to her.
"Careful. She can be a little aggressive around strangers."
Eli looks back to Ace but still continues towards Delmira, like something was pulling him closer. Though they could not see him, she could smell him, and hear him as he slowly approached her. She puts her head lower, ready to defend herself if necessary. Eli holds his hand up, standing his ground.
"I mean it Elias. Be careful."
She lowers herself to lay on the ground, her legs tucking in beside her.
"Delmira."
He repeats again as he places his hand on her forehead. He then goes down on one knee, pressing his forehead to the back of his hand, and whispers to her.
"I am grateful for your service and loyalty. You have my trust."
Eli says it fully instinctively, as he does in his dreams. Delmira purrs in response, nudging her head forward a bit. Ace simply watches, half in shock, as these events unfold.
"She never warms up to people this quick. Heck, she still hasn't warmed up to some people after years."
Ace says, walking towards them.
"All she needs is respect, and she will give it back in return."
"Well, I guess that's what everyone needs. Come on Eli, we've got to move before they catch up. That man sounded quite angry."
Ace says dimly, scratching Delmira's neck.
"Oh, yeah. I forgot about that."
Eli says dimly, rubbing the top of Delmira's head before standing to follow Ace. They go to the side of Delmira. Ace stands beside her and quickly climbs up onto her front leg, then onto her back. He smiles down at Elias and reaches his hand out. Elias climbs up onto her leg, using his momentum to launch himself onto her back and behind Ace, relying completely on his muscle memory from his dreams.
"You're just full of surprises, aren't you?"
Eli chuckles, moving a bit closer to Ace.
"You might want to hold on."
Ace says before facing forwards and leaning down behind Delmira's head. She stands up without Ace saying a word and Elias quickly wraps his arms around Ace's waist, hugging him closely so he won't go flying off. While he has experienced this before in his dreams, it was completely different to actually be there and Eli swears he heard a soft laugh from Ace. Elias holds on tightly, he nuzzles his head against Ace's back, eye shut tightly. He can feel the wind blowing against his hair. He opens his eyes just a bit. They are going so fast that they are almost already at the forest, the yellow dot is a lot bigger, and recognizes that it's actually the nest from his dreams. Delmira slows down and comes to a stop before the forest.
"You okay?"
Ace asks, looking back at Elias and smiling.
"I-I think so."
Ace bursts into laughter, doubling over.
"Why do you find everything I say so funny!?"
Elias asks, a little annoyed by it. His face flushed a light pink.
"Sorry, but everyone from my nest lives the way I do. You act like a cave dweller who's never seen the surface."
"That's 'cause I am a cave dweller who's never seen the surface!"
"That's only how you were raised. Only 'surface dwellers' can breathe this polluted air. This is the air you've been breathing your entire life."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean that you wer-"
Ace is cut off by the attack call of another Kharaneae running at them. Quickly Delmira turns to face it and lowers herself, going into a defensive stance. The other Kharaneae gets ready to pounce. This Kharaneae felt different to Eli. This one felt like it was 'closer' to him. Like they were connected somehow in someway.
'No. Stop.'
Eli thinks as it gets ready to jump at Delmira.
"STOP!"
He yells, closing his eyes and grabbing onto Ace. It's quiet for a moment.