Johaen was sad because he ruined his image in front of his closest pal. Johaen had high respect for Nathaniel and took him as a big brother, only that they were of the same age. Still Nathaniel's powerful aura would make anyone respect him, or even be envious of him.
Thud! a dumb bird hit the mirror of his window. Joahen glanced at the window seeing the bird struggle to get inside even if it would take it's life to reach the receiver.
Finally it clicked his gloomy mind what the bird was there for. He reached the window and pulled the glass up, making way for the parrot to come inside.
As soon as the parrot reached him, Johaen pulled out the little role of the special cloth from the bird's feet which had it written 'It's me Nathaniel, Come to the black palm, we need to talk.' and Nathaniel's silver floral seal on mid bottom of it. After delivering it's message, the bird flew out the window like nothing happened.
"What the hell happened." Johaen spoke out in a tensed tone.
Johaen immediately ran towards the hallway. turning into a lynx on his way down the stairs, leaving the house at the fastest of speed.
_
Dael was wandering around to hunt in the forests when he saw a vulture landing towards him near a tree.
"Lester.." Dael said after he turned into his original form from a teal fox coming out from behind the tree, and Lester turned back into his.
"You look worked out.." Dael said looking at Lester who looked a bit exhausted.
"Nah, I'm good.." Lester replied shoving the sweat that was dripping down his deep burgundy hair away from his head.
"Well I was just going to do some fresh hunt, wanna cheer up?" Dael asked. "I'm sure you wouldn't find any eastern screech at this hour huh.."
"Yeah lets do some hunting. Besides, without trying all the different flavors, how would one know what's most delicious.." Lester replied licking his right fang.
Meanwhile at black palm*
"Yes Nathan." Johaen said after he turned into his original form, reaching the tree which Nathaniel was standing by.
Nathaniel who was looking at the sky turned around and said "Was Lester home?"
"What? I don't know. Its so random, let me remember." Johaen replied cluelessly.
"I think, on my way here I did not see his room's lights switched on." Johaen concluded after pondering for a second. "Why are you asking though?" He added.
"I think your friend might have gone nuts, if he's involved in whatever the hell this is." Nathaniel told Johaen.
"What? What are you talking about?!" Johaen inquired, he was very confused.
"I guess you too are clueless about the bodies found." Nathaniel informed, his arms crossed and his posture relaxed.
"What bodies??" Johaen asked worriedly, he was scared as Lester was mentioned earlier in the conversation which made him related to whatever was going on.
"Apparently they are calling them 'The Cut throats', which means maybe they'll call the killer 'Throat cutter' lol!" Nathaniel suppressed his laugh covering his nose with a closed wrist.
"Stop bluffing Nathe! How are you even finding this funny!" Johaen said, he was very worried. "What about the bodies, and how is it related to Lester?" Johaen asked.
"Do you know where were the bodies found.." Nathaniel said.
"Where?" Johaen asked.
"The border forests." Nathaniel answered.
"You mean 'the border forests' after the elder banyan?" Johaen exclaimed.
"Yes Johaen, how many other border forests do we have in Dongiana." Nathaniel said sarcastically.
"But it could be any one right, maybe they aren't even related to yesterday's incedent." Johaen came up with excuses optimistically.
"Yeah it could be anyone except that their wrists were slit.." Nathaniel casually added the detail looking into Johaen's blood red eyes.
"What the hell?" Johaen frowned, the color of his eyes turned darker due to seriousness.
"It can't be Lester, can it?" Johaen said worriedly.
"I hope not." Nathaniel replied.
"Let's go." Nathaniel said before turning his way to the east.
"Hey wait! Where are we going?" Johaen shouted.
"Wait!" Johaen shouted again, before turning into a lynx in order to cover the pace of Nathaniel who already reached a farther distance without even changing his form.
After reaching Nathaniel, Johaen changed back to his original form, walking beside Nathaniel both in the same pace.
"Hey, I asked you a question. Where are we heading?" Johaen asked again, while continuing walking beside Nathaniel.
"Sometimes you can be so idiotic. Isn't it obvious?" Nathaniel replied while looking at Johaen who was still clueless. "The Elder Banyan, where else." Nathaniel answered with slight annoyance.
"Oh. Yea.. Rightt." Johaen agreed.
The Elder Banyan*
Nathaniel jumped, easily reaching a high trunk of the grand tree, and sat on the trunk.
"This is where you guys were sitting right?" Nathaniel asked.
"Yea, but a bit lower." Johaen replied while also joining Nathaniel with two smooth jumps.
"There we found them." Johaen informed pointing to the bushes over a distance.
"I don't see any remains though, do you?" Johaen asked.
Nathaniel jumped down and headed to the bushes and Johaen followed him.
"What are these?" Nathaniel touched the mud that was exposed and the dead grass over it with his long finger.
"These are the marks of the things they were riding on." Johaen replied.
"Cars?" Nathaniel said.
"Gars, now you are suddenly craving fish at this serious situation and you call me idiotic." Johaen mocked.
"Cars are what humans travel in." Nathaniel replied ignoring his less knowledgeable friend.
"What, How do you know that?" Johaen asked.
"I don't waste my time partying like idiots." Nathaniel hummed. "I just saw them in book though, never seen one in real life." He added coming back to the point.
"Lets follow these marks." Johaen said.
Nathaniel and Johaen started tracing the tyre tracks.
"If I'm not wrong, these marks aren't leading the way towards the border forests Nathe." Johaen said looking at the marks reaching the farther horizons where the sun was setting.
"Hey guys! I've been looking for you all over the town." Dael said after turning back to his original form."They found the Cut Throats-"
"Phhh" Nathaniel squeaked a laugh out of cringe, covering his mouth with the large palm of his hand that had a broad width black ring around the middle finger of his, beautifying the veiny hand further.
"Ignore him." Johaen told Dael who was staring at Nathaniel, confused on what he was laughing at .
"and.. The funeral is planned in a week by the burial ground." Dael hummed his sentence complete.
"Oh so you heard." Johaen replied.
"A week is pretty quick for the funeral. They are kinless in Dongiana, so nobody would have claimed relation yet." Nathaniel said raising his right brow.
"And usually, the cemetery waits until a few weeks for some kin to show up for taking care of the funeral." Johaen added.
"Rarely indeed but the Burial ground does claim the funeral at times." Dael added a clashing fact.
"That's when no kin claims relation. And this claim of the cemetery is still quicker than usual." Johaen immediately disagreed.
Dael replied "They do usually give the kin more time to show up. But this case is different, not only in our point of view, but also because the news of the deaths spread the entire Dongiana faster than usual, maybe due to the complication of the incident or so, but still-."
"But still no kin showed up to claim the funeral." Johaen added with a conclusive expression, his index fingers of both hands touching each other resting below his chin."
"The bodies? we need to have a look, when are they planned to be coffined." Nathaniel asked.
"I guess I heard someone from the inside say tomorrow." Dael pondered for a second before answering being proud of his good sense of hearing.
"Even though that's the Kin's right? they'll still go down that way.. Why the mockery of even a week then." Johaen said with a frustrated expression.
"What if they know.." Dael said with an astonished expression.
Nathaniel rushed his way back as both of his friends followed him.
"Why are we rushing back?" Johaen asked.
Nathaniel replied "Maybe because if the cemetery has no optimism of Kin-claim, they wouldn't plan on waiting."