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Cyen You walk quickly, following the odd shape swimming in the water. It looks familiar, yet you don't remember ever seeing anything like it. Certainly nothing so obviously aquatic. Besides, it obviously knows you're following it, and it doesn't seem to care. Soon you notice it's swimming closer to the bank, and you stop to give it room to climb out. When it does, shaking itself--and getting you wet in the process--it walks on land as easily as it darted through the water. You watch it in amazement.  So fascinated are you as it sets off again across the land that you almost miss the pair of shapes watching from the shade of a tree. In fact, you would have missed them if the sun hadn't happened to bounce off the white one's fur. When you look back to see aquatic animal, it's gone.   The pair looks at you uncertainly, standing up together. "Um..." you say. "You speak?" the white one asks delightedly, which shocks you so much you almost trip and fall. "Y-yes," you respond, regaining your composure. "I didn't think you would, though. I--" you introduce yourself. She nods. "I am Jikenjui, and this is Oiru." Oiru glances at her disapprovingly, but she ignores him and continues, "The one you were following was Enkainiji." "The one from the water? She didn't look anything like you," you respond doubtfully. This time the black one--Oiru--responds. "She's rather severely mutated." He looks confused at your horrified expression, then continues hurriedly, "It's not something bad, like on your world. In fact, some like yourself devote their lives to breeding just such rare traits in cyen. Among us, to have a mutation is a bragging quality." You remain silent as you try to comprehend this, and at that moment yet another cyen enters.  "What's going on?" she asks Oiru in a suspicious voice. From her actions, you assume that Oiru is the unofficial leader, though Jikenjui answers first. "Just another visitor," she answers quietly. "I'm not sure how it found us." She doesn't seem to realize that you can hear her. "I don't think it knew we were here, so it'll probably be leaving soon." Oiru gives her an alarmed, cautioning glance, but by then it's to late. Indignant and surprised--you were a sentient being, of course you could understand her!--you restate her wishes with hurt pride. "Well. Well, then! I think I'll be going now." You turn and walk away.
The Town of Hearth |
