It seems that whoever this Archer character was, he was important to these folks because the moment Owlvin realised what was going on, he ran back in the direction we had come from. Probably to inform Kalen about the situation or to obtain additional assistance.
When Owlvin rushed out of there, I was stunned and unsure of what to do. Do I want to follow him or not?
It didn't take long for the small chimaera to gather his breath and chase after Owlvin, and I decided to follow out of curiosity.
It didn't take long for us to arrive at the location where Owlvin was speaking to Kalen in a distressed tone. The news had clearly taken Kalen and Beatrix, the female cheetah next to him by surprise and concern. Beatrix was sufficiently shocked to overlook my existence, which is a big deal.
"DAMN IT," Kalen exclaimed with the same expression on his face, but his voice revealed a different emotion. His voice sounded more annoyed than concerned; he sounded irritated.
"We got to go after him, right? RIGHT, KALEN?" the chimaera panickily asked Kalen, who did not react.
It was really difficult to read the tone of the room just now; I was always lousy at reading moods, but it was even more difficult with these people. Not only do I not know if they still act like actual humans, but I also have no idea how to read the emotions on some of their faces. Only Kalen and Beatrix had readable faces; for the rest, I had to rely on their voices to form my theories.
Kalen finally spoke after about a minute or two, "Yes, we'll do it. We will lose a friend and compromise our goal of remaining concealed from society if we do not go. That's two things I'd like to prevent, but in order to do so, I need further information, such as the type of people who obtained Archer, as well as their location and equipment."
Kalen said in a tired and angry tone, followed by a strange expression that could only be seen if one concentrated very hard. He wore a depressed expression on his face. I assume it's there because of the situation, but what's with his voice?
The tiny chimaera who came to report this awful scenario realized that Kalen's speech was mostly meant for him. He then began to tell his story in full. Based on what he stated, I deduced that they were investigating the noises of battle in the forest, which most likely involved the bear and me.
This chameleon chimaera and Archer, about whom I know nothing, appeared to be one of the parties looking for the sounds of fighting, but they travelled in the wrong direction because Kalen's party was the one who found me. This information makes me ponder about two things: the location of this area and the possibility that many people will blame me later on.
Based on what I've learned so far, I believe this camp is somewhere near the woodlands where I was with the bear.
The chameleon chimaera went on to say that the people who got Archer appeared to be hunters of some sort because they had hunting gear. The number of hunters noticed by the chameleon chimaera appears to be around 8, indicating that they are potentially harmful.
That was all the information the chameleon chimera had or was willing to give to the others.
Before answering, Kalen listened attentively to the chameleon chimera's information "Fortunately, they are normal hunters, and you assume they didn't see you, which is a good thing. We'll send four people to finish off those hunters..."
Before Kalen could finish, he was interrupted by Owlvin, who objected to the concept of sending only four people, arguing that it couldn't hurt to send more, but Kalen was unconcerned with Owlvin's point of view and simply elected his own plan by shutting down Owlvin's.
"Tito will surely be one of the four because we need him for directions and such, Beatrix will also accompany you, followed by Owlvin, and...", Kalen was studying his surroundings, looking for another acceptable candidate when his eyes met mine. He had finally spotted my presence and was taken aback that he hadn't noticed me sooner.
"Ahh, that's it, the fourth one will be...hmm oh ye, I forgot to ask what your name is..."
As Kalen realised his mistake of never asking my name, I struggled to draw out the letters while the other chimaeras glanced at me puzzledly. It took a few tries, but the information was properly transmitted in the end.
"Leigh will be your fourth member. Now, hurry up before the hunters leave the forest and seal our doom "Kalen spoke in a deep and commanding tone.
Owlvin acknowledged Kalen's choice, but the other two, Beatrix and Tito, looked at me and then back to Kalen, as if to disagree without actually protesting. Kalen calmly ignored them and said only one thing: "I believe in his ability."
Beatrix was enraged as usual at me and Kalen's decision, but Tito no longer objected to my inclusion in this rescue group as a result of Kalen's statements. It was weird. He had no reaction towards me, a weird and creepy demon like creature. I was perplexed. Tito was accepting everything too quickly but I had no clue or information to go on so I just ignored it as a weird feeling.
With that out of the way, we departed the camp-style structure. There was a forest outside the structure. I assume the structure in which we paused is located within a forest. This makes perfect sense because the forest is somewhat isolated from human civilization or, at the very least, major human cities, allowing the chimaeras to hide more comfortably.
Just like me, they view the forest as their heavens, their safe grounds where no serious danger exists.
While I was deep in thought, Owlvin turned to face me and began speaking, "In case it's helpful, Archer is around the same height as me, if not slightly taller. He is a dark brown eagle with a golden gleam on the back of his head. On his wings, he also has some peach coloured feathers."
With that, we embarked on our journey to wherever Tito was bringing us in order to save this Archer character, an eagle chimaera.