Chya stood next to four humans, and one seemed to be praising them. The same human stroked the plant on the Charthu's head that now wagged through the air. Chya held their hand in the air and motioned a playful wave, then smiled.
Cylor raced back toward Tynun, who crawled in spider-like patterns attempting to close in on the humans. Cylor remembered mock duels he would have with him, and felt hopeless. Tynun had a few tricks up his sleeve, but none to the level to fall such a giant. Nonetheless, four of them! Cylor positioned his body to face a different human, their hair dangling around in the firelight surrounding bright white teeth and eyes. And before he knew it, Sarby and Guile had returned beside the raging flames, to face the final two assailants.
One on one, against a human? The friends looked at each other once more, though as was becoming usual, Tynun kept his eyes locked only ahead, ignoring the others. The human facing Tynun began to cackle, and then threw his device down at the ground, and light escaped it as well as a lifeform. Neyr appeared before him.
Tynun broke his tough and rigid appearance. His legs wobbled. "Neyr... Hey, are you—"
"I'm sorry, brother!" Neyr shot forward and tackled his brother to the ground. "I can't... I can't defy them." Tears streamed from his face.
Tynun made no attempt to fight back or even rise from the ground, yet the onslaught of attacks continued, and the tears from his sibling continued to pour onto his own hollow eyes. "I'll save you."
Neyr continued to attack, and while the group was distracted by this, new species they didn't recognize now stood before Cylor and Guile. Although, what stood in front of Sarby was a familiar face. Chya.
-----
"I figured it would be most fitting for me to fight you," Chya said. "After all, we are one and the same."
"What do you mean?" Sarby took a fighting stance, though he had no idea how he planned to attack.
"As expected of a resident of Jalla, the most secluded, left in the dark society in our parts of the world." Chya's leaf flailed around. "You come from my tribe. The Elnoas are an off branch of the pure Charthu. You guys abandoned us about a hundred years ago, and you've already changed so much. Just look at you, you can even glow! How repulsive. Your tribe just couldn't be content with living in the pleasant grasslands, they got addicted to that damn substance found in the caves. Pathetic!"
Sarby's fighting spirit seemed to vanish for a second as he tried to process all that was being said. As his gaze shifted, he brought himself to look back to Tynun, who was pinned and bloodied by his sibling. His mind went blank. The cluster on Sarby's head burned brighter than ever before. The horn on his head began to shine a furious red, that arched all the way down to ignite his tail.
"It's those chemicals, I'm telling you. Lucky for you, though, this is looking like it'll be a losing battle for me now, but I'm not sure about your other friends—"
Sarby charged forward and ripped the plant out from Chya's head, causing red to pour down their face. They screamed in horror and agony, yet the human behind them appeared to be laughing.
---
Guile stood facing a large pink bird with its tongue sticking out all the way to the ground. Puddles of saliva dripped off and sizzled when it touched the ground. They laughed as they chirped. "Ah, what an opponent for me. A Gurden! Haven't seen one of those since I was young."
Guile's face scrunched up at the disgusting creature. "You are quite a revolting thing, but I'll humor you in a battle. To be honest," Guile quieted his voice. "I plan on letting myself be captured, but I better put on a display for my friends. Perhaps, I'd even grow stronger if I defeat you. I've learned all you human kept species' secrets from Chya over there." Guile smirked.
"Interesting. Well, even if you are willing to be captured, I don't think I could hold back from burning off your fur. It's kind of a hobby of mine."
Guile winced and then looked around for a moment as a bright light blinded him. The glow up that Sarby was going through shocked him. The ferocity in Sarby's face was nothing Guile had ever seen before.
The bird spat a swab of saliva onto Guile's legs while he was distracted, and the Gurden fell down immediately, screaming.
"Already over?"
---
Cylor stood before an aquatic being much like himself. Purple, though they had fins instead of flippers and two horns instead of one. He knew the species was Shuraek from a memory in early childhood. One of them had saved him from bullies that dragged him far out to the depths of the ocean.
"You seem confused, Dhasum. I, too, am quite confused. How do creatures like us who thrive around water, come so far from it? Sure, we get the occasional pond like that one over there, but I digress. Instead of peaceful waves and sandy lands, all around I can only find violence these days. You know, I don't actually want to fight you, but they are this human's orders." He shook his head. "They are much harder to go against than you would expect. So, if I can't hold myself back any longer, just know that I have no hard feelings toward you."
"I've seen species like you, once when I got drifted off by the current of the ocean. One of your kind helped me find my way back home."
"Perhaps, I am from a friendly aquatic tribe, which is why this pisses me off even further. You want to know how I was even caught?!" He growled. "I was caught up in a fishing net of all things! Just trying to relax and eat a nice dinner. Figures, I guess."
The human shouted from behind, throwing his arms around in the air.
"This asshole is getting impatient. Humans are trash and don't forget it." He paused and approached Cylor, dragging his fins. "Huh, I've seen many Dhasums. Never one with such a tail though. So Chya was right, I hate that stupid plant." He looked over at Chya. "Oh, looks like she isn't a plant anymore. Only red, perfect. Well, rest assured, friend. If you are caught, you will be kept alive by these slaveholders. Your tail would bring too much value to kill."
"So, are you going to fight me?" Cylor backed up.
The purple fish sighed. "I've truly got no choice. The pain of resistance they are filling me with right now, feels unbearable, thought I'd have a bit longer to talk, but as I said before this one is mighty impatient. Once you're caught, you'll understand. Hope we can be friends when you're on my side. Try not to take this personal." He bared his fangs and threw himself through the air with his fins, tackling Cylor into a nearby pond. "Didn't think I'd have the advantage on land." The deep sea species began to smile.
"What are you happy about?" Cylor managed to speak as the fish swam straight for him.
"Relief." He chomped on Cylor's flipper and Cylor immediately used his handtail to rip the fish's jaws open and free himself to the other side of the pond. "Ah, so the hand isn't just for show."
-----
Sarby's bloodied opponent was sent back in a beam of light. Another species replaced the Charthu. Sarby stood face to face with a massive four legged beast, and as he dodged their attacks he felt more alive than ever. Almost bringing himself to a smile while trading blows. No one could push him down in this state. It was as if his horn and tail were now limbs that he could move as freely as his own arms and legs. He took a massive blow from the beast and was sent away through the air and crashed near the firepit. Sarby couldn't help but laugh, but in the midst of his own laughter he heard the screams and cries of his friends around him that sunk him back to reality.
He darted to the direction of Guile and slammed into the bird, sending them back to their human. The human screamed as he seemed to have been hit with some kind of liquid on his arm. The human summoned light to take back his bird and rushed back into the tent.
"Sarby, what happened to you?" Guile's mouth dropped open.
