[center][b][h2]Genesis at Muraymuna[/h2][/b][/center]

[center][b]I[/b][/center]

  The jungle teemed with life, and the earthiness could be tasted on the air. Wherever one cast the eye, it fell upon insects or some kind of animal, and whether they walked on the jungle pathways or in the thick undergrowth the sound of the jungle came forth like a great, endless cacophonous symphony. Monkeys shrieked, deers dashed here and there - pausing for a few moments to stare wide-eyed before leaping away and disappearing into the relatively light undergrowth -, chameleons moved here and there, their colour changing as they went, paused, and went again, the pecking of the woodpecker and the song of an unknown number of birds was a constant companion.

  From time to time Genesis and Birburelli spied an elusive jaguar or tiger, or the magnificent elephant would come trundling by or the frowning visage of a gorilla would assail them from a distance, and when they paused by a stream there were fish and the odd crocodile or dolphin was to be spied.

  And of course, there were people. The first such people they came across were a band of One-Godder warriors, adorned in their great copper [url=https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/divinus-mk4/images/4/4a/One-Godder_Warrior.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20201108034351]war headresses[/url] which boasted hairs of red, green, white, or black. They paused when they saw Genesis and eyed her and the ascetic, and their lone donkey, with the obsidian eyes everyone here seemed to have. “You are travelling with an emkura, master?” Their leader, a broad-chested man with a hair-dress of white hairs and adorned with great round earrings and collar chains, as well as bands around his lower chest and arms. Like the other men with him, he had a bow over his shoulder, arrows at his side, and a spear with a silvery metallic head in hand.

  “That I am, son. A child of the god in the trees.” The ascetic responded, accompanied by Genesis’ nodding.

  “Ah, you are a Ritualist.” The leader said, his brows furrowing.

  “Is that a crime in these parts?”

  “Not too long ago it was near enough a crime to be anything but,” the leader scowled, “you and your [i]shids[/i] are an endless plague of unceasing bloodshed all across the land.”

  “I have known no Ritualist who called to bloodshed, son.” Birburelli responded simply. The leader’s eyes narrowed and he stepped close to the middle-age man.

  “Oh, but we’ve known plenty - and they got the bloodshed they desired.” There were a few moments of tension, and then Birburelli smiled.

  “But I hear that it is all peace now across the Muraymuna, the great Shidilshid has ended all the bloodletting and cast all the [i]shids[/i] and Ritualists out.”

  “Oh not all.” The leader said, his eyes returning to Genesis, who looked away at the exact same moment. “Only those who preferred the rule of oppression to that of justice. But how is it that you are travelling with an [i]emkura[/i]. I know them to be elusive beings that keep to themselves.”

  “That they are. But this lovely [i]emkura[/i] has chosen to honour me with the pleasure of her company.” He glanced at Genesis with a small smile. “Much to the chagrin of my good friend Lukluk, who would have much preferred to eat her,” He gave the donkey’s rump a light slap, causing Lukluk to curl his lips up at the man while Genesis stuck her tongue out mockingly at the donkey, “isn’t that so my [i]emkura[/i]?”

  Genesis looked at Birburelli for a moment, then at the group of armed men and furrowed her brow. [color=tomato]“That is so. Birburelli has taught me a whole lot of stuff. I’ve also gotten to speak to spirits, too! Hey,”[/color] Genesis perked up as she caught sight of the shiny spear head, [color=tomato]“what is that? What do you use it for? It looks sharp and pointy, but not in the same way as a knife.”[/color] She asked, pointing at the spear.

  The leader seemed visibly taken aback by the sylphi’s speech, and the men behind him shifted and looked at her with curiosity, a kind of gaze that Genesis returned along with a tilt of her head. “Ah, by the great one god, you speak.”

  [color=tomato]“Yes! I know, right? Usually people don’t really speak to strangers, if the children back in Dihrmeti are anything to go by--I guess I’m not shy, which is really good because I like getting to know new things-”[/color] Genesis stopped herself, spared a quick glance towards Birburelli, then blushed. With shaky leaves, she continued. [color=tomato]“... Sorry, I got carried away. Have you seen other emkuras around?”[/color]

  “No, it is rare to see one,” the leader said, his eyes roaming across her form, clearly fascinated, “and when you do, they don’t stick around for you to actually… see them. Tell me, are you people truly children of the jungle? Why did your great king invade our lands all those hundreds of cycles ago? If you have a great kingdom somewhere in the west, why are you here?”

  Genesis sighed, her leaves flat against her head as she realized finding people that looked like her would be more difficult than she previously thought, then huffed as she processed the man’s question, [color=tomato]“Uhm… To answer all of that, I don’t know. I lived in a gray land for my entire life, and the moment I met one of my kind, she saved me at the expense of her own life… I didn’t even know there was a whole kingdom filled with people like me, much less that they invaded these lands. I awoke in Dehrthaa, alone and injured, and Birburelli saved me. That is all there is to me.”[/color] She explained somewhat quietly, then looked at the leader for a reaction.

  The leader nodded, appearing satisfied. “Very well, may the one great god aid you find what your heart is searching for. May peace follow you always.” And planting his palm above his eye in salute, gestured to his band of warriors and went on their way through the jungle. Birburelli watched them go for a few moments then cast Genesis a sidelong glance.

  “And there are the One-Godders. Not long ago they were a persecuted people at the mercy of the [i]shids[/i]. Now the [i]shids[/i] are dead or have run away north, and the One-Godders are the masters of the jungle. Quite something to see how the gods bless whom they wish and curse whom they will, raise high some and cast others low.”

  Genesis pursed her lips as she returned Birburelli’s gaze, [color=tomato]“Yeah… Did I tell you before? Ahthaaruhs told me I used to be Divine before. That means I was a Goddess, right? Or maybe I never was, but I inherited the remnants of a God’s spirit. I really… REALLY, have no idea. Maybe that’s why I can fly and Lukluk can’t.”[/color] She said with a sigh and a tired smile as she floated herself onto the donkey’s back and roughly petted his head behind the ears. [color=tomato]“Huh, what do you think would have happened if I told those One-Godders about this?”[/color]

  “Oh I am sure they would have asked who made you.” Birburelli said simply. “A god who needs saving, as far as they are concerned, is no god. See, they don’t disbelieve in the gods we profess - they simply don’t believe them to be gods. The Thousand Terrible Things and Faces are created beings - created by the One Who Frowns or One Who Laughs. Likewise those two emerged at one point in time - once they weren’t, and then they were. And so, for the One-Godders, these are no gods. Only the Serene Lord - though they reject the Serene Lord we profess - always existed and so is eternal, and all things emerged from him truly, and perhaps he is truly all things. And so they profess nothing to be a true god except what we call the Serene Lord.” The ascetic smiled and began walking, Lukluk trudging after him. “Why, did you hope to shake their belief? Perhaps they would have shaken yours, my [i]emkura[/i].”

   [color=tomato]“Them shaking my belief would be really impressive, considering I don’t believe in anything yet.”[/color] She said with a smirk before jumping off of Lukluk and jogging up to walk beside Birburelli. Like this, they went back into the way they would usually travel. The encounter with the One-Godders was left behind and Genesis continued on with her questions and adoration for all the new things she was seeing. She was tamer now, not as excited as before, and she also asked less questions, but that was because she found herself not needing to ask them as often. It seemed that she had actually gotten to learn most of the basics. Though from time to time her mind did wander back to the shiny material the One-Godders’ tools were made out of. She wondered what it felt like, how sharp it was, and if she could make clothes out of it.

  As they traveled, dusk approached and soon they found themselves making camp amongst the ever thickening vegetation. The fire seemed to keep the wildlife away, thankfully.

  [color=tomato]“Birburelli, what was the shiny stuff the One-Godders’ tools were made out of? And the hoops that hung from their ears, too. Can you make clothes out of it?”[/color] Genesis asked, then winced as something pinched at her side, followed by a light rustling from her dress’ leaves.

  The ascetic held a skewered lizard over the fire as he responded. “That is killer metal - it kills the one who works it and slays men on the bloodletting fields. It has other uses too - more worthy and peaceful. Sculptures, ploughs, ornaments, and the such. As for those hoop earrings, I have not known anyone to make clothing out of them - I imagine such clothing would be very uncomfortable and cold and would protect neither against rain nor against cold.” He glanced at her. “Would you like some earrings?”

  The girl hummed in thought and reached up to touch and rub her long, sharp ears. After a moment, she shook her head. [color=tomato]“I’d have to poke holes in my ears to wear them, wouldn’t I? My ears are very sensitive, so I’m not that good with pain when it comes to them… And well, it’s not like [i]my[/i] clothing does much to protect from cold or rai- ow!”[/color] Genesis hissed as she felt another pinch, this time on her thigh, and realized that something was slithering across her skin. In a split moment, all her leaves had prickled up and her ears bobbed up and down as she slid a few of the large leaves her dress was made of to the side, revealing her leg and a glimpse of a dark green and soft looking tendril before it retreated into the shadows and crevices of the dress. At this Genesis grumbled and put her dress back into location. [color=tomato]“I think I just said something my dress didn’t like… Do your clothes get angry when you mess up, too?”[/color] She asked Birburelli in what almost seemed like a whisper as she shifted her position to sit on her knees, bouncing somewhat onto her heels.

  The ascetic paused and looked at her thoughtfully. “No, mine don’t do that. But then again, I don’t speak to gods who tell me I was a god in a past life. You’re quite the special one, aren’t you my little [i]emkura[/i]?” He reached out and ruffled her leafy head as he was wont to do, making her grin and chuckle a little. “You have great things before you, of that I’ve no doubt.”

  After that, their conversation turned to the more mundane. As usual, Genesis had a few questions about the day’s journey, about where they’d go tomorrow and what they might see, and as they talked Genesis watched Birburelli eat the cooked lizard curiously. Eventually, when everything was done and they were both tired, they went to sleep around the campfire. Genesis, of course, chose to snuggle up to Lukluk, to the animal’s dismay.

  The next few days of walking brought wondrous sights - for the jungle was alive with all kinds of fauna and flora, and Genesis was ever-curious and easily amazed. As they wandered deeper and deeper into the jungle, it seemed to them that they were somehow being watched. This did not seem to bother Birburelli at all. “Of course we are being watched,” he chortled softly.

[center][b]II[/b][/center]

  The mysterious spy snuck up on them one night as Birburelli lay sleeping and Genesis was curled up by Lukluk. She was not asleep, however, and her leaves bristled slightly as the stranger snuck into camp, their footsteps silent and deft.

 Genesis, having caught a different scent in the camp, opened her eyes… Only to see a knee. She turned onto her back and saw a towering figure wearing an ivory white mask above her. He was straddling her chest, knees to either side of her shoulders, and in his hands was a strange device, a wooden cylinder with several carvings on it, each of them glowing a bright blue, a blue that seemed to drill into her eyes and burn the back of her head. 

  She felt her heart beat faster. Her breath came quicker. She tried to do anything, say anything, to get Birburelli to wake up… But since her eyes saw the device, it was as if her body was no longer hers. 

  Then, the device flashed.

  Genesis writhed under the weight of the figure. Images came from nowhere, replacing her sight. Memories, feelings, scents, words, they all came and went so quickly she could barely register what she was seeing. Her head felt like it was about to explode and every nerve in her body screamed at her to get away, to escape, as if she was on fire.

  And yet no matter how much she struggled, the weight on her torso didn’t budge. Instead the figure suddenly sat on top of her, knocking the air out of her lungs and freezing her struggles in the process. 

  She would’ve cried, whimpered or even begged if she could make any sound. With Birburelli so close; with someone to help her right there, just a few steps away… And still, he was sleeping peacefully, completely unaware of what was happening. 

  At last, however, a single memory came to her. There, she was lying on her side on the comfiest grass she’d ever felt, with the warmth of sunlight dancing across her right side and her head resting against something... No, [i]someone[/i], who was gently stroking her leaves. She felt content. Happy. Fulfilled. 

  In that memory, there was nothing she wanted but to remain with that person, in that hill under that tree. She felt the memory was coming to an end, and so she tried to look up, she tried to see who the owner of those gentle hands was… But when she lifted her head, the memory ended. 

  Instead, she was looking into the ivory mask of the one who had assaulted her. With tears fresh against her cheeks and the sides of her face, Genesis found her vision darkening and felt the familiar sensation of her consciousness fading away. The last thing she saw was her assaulter stand up and look down at her from behind his smooth mask. For some reason, he looked… Sad.

[center][b]III[/b][/center]

  Genesis awoke later. It was still dark, but in the sky rays of violet, green and aquamarine could be seen dancing in the celestial Worldsong, announcing the coming of dawn.

  She sat up, of course, and looked at Birburelli. He was still fast asleep, but from experience she knew he would wake up soon. The next thing she did was check her body and particularly her dress. She was relieved to see everything in place and working correctly, and lastly she tried to wipe the feeling of dry tears off of her face to little success. 

  As soon as she actually looked around, however, she saw a single figure sitting on a particularly large root a couple of meters away from her. He --Genesis had confirmed it was a he by his particularly powerful scent-- was toying with a piece of wood in his hand, carving chunks at a time out of the piece. He was wearing leathers, and on top of the leathers were bones. Sown into the leathers, the bones were everything from ribs to plates to vertebrae, and together they seemed to be serving as protection for the wearer. Behind him, leaned against the tree, was an unbelievably large blade made of the bone of what she assumed to be an incredibly massive creature, with handles reinforced with what Genesis could only recognize as some of the ‘killer metal’ Birburelli had told her about before. It definitely didn’t look like something she could ever carry, let alone use to harm others. 

  The man himself was not a man at all. Instead, he had yellowing variegated leaves for hair, a pale green as skin color and dark sclera coupled with bright, icy blue irises. When he lifted his gaze and met it with Genesis’ and sighed, she could see the glint coming from his long fangs.

  Suddenly feeling excited, she grinned and crawled the short distance to him, then sat before him. 

  [color=tomato]“I’m Genesis, who are you?”[/color] She asked, so excited from meeting someone like her that she couldn’t help her jaw and shoulders from shivering.

  “I’m a Hunter,” The male Sylphi said, voice rough in such a way that Genesis was sure he had not used it in a long time. A short silence ensued, as if he expected something from the girl, but he slowly raised an eyebrow as he only saw her staring at him wide eyed. “So, you’re not this human’s slave, then?” 

  [color=tomato]“What? No! He’s my friend. His name is Birburelli. He saved me when I was alone and injured, he is good. Also, what is your actual name?”[/color]

  “I see. I’m just a Hunter, no need for a name. It’s my last expedition.” 

  [color=tomato]“Oh. Okay,”[/color] Genesis said, noticing how the Hunter never really took his eyes off of Birburelli. She also noticed a sheathed knife strapped to his right thigh. [color=tomato]“Um, is that for skinning animals? Do you eat raw meat like me? What about blood?”[/color]

  “Hey, that’s a lot of questions for someone who was just crying in her sleep.”

    [color=tomato]“H-Huh? I… I was not! I swear, someone attacked me tonight and then I fainted… Or something… They made me see things!”[/color] She explained, blushing and trying once more to wipe the white marks left by her tears. Meanwhile, the Hunter had pulled out a piece of fabric and wet it with water from his waterskin. 

  “Sure. Here,” He said and handed her the fabric, which she took with a frown. After a while of her staring at the thing, the Hunter sighed again, “What are you waiting for? You got weeds for brains? Use it to clean your face. Dried tears are bad for your skin, you know?”

  [color=tomato]“Oh,”[/color] Genesis perked up and went to work at wiping her face. When she was done she let her hands, cupping the bunched up fabric, rest between her legs as she tilted her head at the Hunter, [color=tomato]“So, males cry too? I’ve never seen Birburelli cry.”[/color] She asked, for some reason surprised at the new information.

  “We do, of course. Humans around these parts only cry for their own, though. You have to be careful with them... There’s no shortage of young Sylphi who have met the wrong humans and been turned into little more than pets.” He said, a hint of bitterness seeping into his voice before he reeled it in. At this point, he nodded towards Birburelli. “Heads up, your friend’s waking up.”

  The ascetic opened his eyes as though he had been awake all along and almost immediately sat up, muttering prayers and glorifying the lord of day for the blessing of new life, the spirits that lorded over night and sleep and dreams for those blessings also, those who lorded over sight, over the capacity to move, to breathe, and praised also those who lorded over speech and so allowed him to glorify and praise the givers of such blessings. He took up a bowl, full of dew water, and poured it over his own head while muttering the prayers yet, and then drank his fill and got to his feet.

  It was then that he took note of Genesis and her companion. “Ah, you’re up earlier than usual my [i]emkura[/i],” he observed as his eyes turned to the newcomer. “And who is this?”

  Genesis perked up and grinned as she turned to look at her friend, [color=tomato]“Good morning, Birburelli! Well, he’s-”[/color]

  “Just a Hunter. Nothing more. Human, I want to thank you for taking care of this sapling. By now, it has been far too many times that I’ve seen our young in less than ideal situations. You’ve a decent soul.” The hunter said, bowing his head slightly. For a moment, it looked to Genesis as if the hard look in his eyes had softened, but before she knew it, it was back and stronger as the Hunter raised his head again. “I will have to tell you that a sapling like her, someone so pure and innocent, shouldn’t be near humans. We are different races, and we have different customs and ways to deal with our needs. She shall be accompanying me now.”

  Genesis pursed her lips and frowned, [color=tomato]“I, uh, I have a name you know. I told you, I’m Genesis. And, and, I won’t leave Birburelli’s side that easily! You’re crazy if you think I’m going to accept going with you, I don’t know you! You may smell really nice and strong but I don’t know you.”[/color]

  The Hunter sighed and shook his head, talking to Birburelli and mostly dismissing Genesis, “Point in case, she doesn’t even know how to rein in her baser instincts, as evidenced by her drooling all over her dress just because of my scent. If she remains with humans she may never get to learn how to hold herself back, and she’d eventually be too much of a hassle for any human settlement.”

  [color=tomato]“W-What!!”[/color] Genesis shouted, her face suddenly flushed a deep, dark yellow. She wiped at her lips and stared incredulously at the Hunter. [color=tomato]“I-I’m NOT drooling. You’re mean. He’s mean, Birburelli! I don’t want to go with him!”[/color] She said, while the Hunter smirked.

  “So, what do you say, ‘Birburelli’? Will you let her go? It’s for her own good. I know how to take care of a Sylphi sapling much better than any human might.” Birburelli frowned at the stranger and then chortled at Genesis.

  “So full of demands. If Gen wants to travel with you, she will. But it doesn’t seem like your approach is working so…” he took Lukluk’s reins and began to wander off, gesturing for Genesis to come along, “perhaps it will not be her travelling with you, but you who will have to travel with her.”

  Genesis grinned and jumped up onto her feet, wasting no time in catching up to Birburelli. The Hunter meanwhile bit the inside of his cheek and grunted, then began to follow the two of them from a distance after making sure he wasn’t forgetting any of his equipment.

[center][b]IV[/b][/center]

  It was after a good while of walking that suddenly Genesis realized that she couldn’t hear the Hunter’s footsteps behind them. A quick glance backwards confirmed it -- He wasn’t there. How long ago had he left? Maybe he had gotten bored? She wasn’t sure how she felt about it. On one hand, he was the first [i]emkura[/i] she’d met… Well, besides herself obviously. And on the other hand he was a weirdo and told her she was drooling even though she wasn’t and implied Birburelli wasn’t a good friend. She particularly disliked the last bit. 

  A dry twig snapped, as if crushed. The sound was clear in Genesis’ sensitive ears, and her leaves rustled wildly in response, sending a strong shiver down her back. 

  Instinctively she found herself balled up into a small shape on the ground, looking over her knees toward the sides of the overgrown path Birburelli and her had been traversing for the last hour. The sides were completely obstructed by overgrown vegetation. Such was the overgrowth that it was in some places spilling onto the path, and so Genesis couldn’t see anything past the gigantic overgrowth. In front of her, she saw her friend stop and turn to look at her with a gentle smile on his weathered face.

  She looked up at him with wide, bright eyes, completely unable to move. She was frozen in place, her mind repeating the sound of the twig snapping over and over.

  Had Birburelly not heard the sound? That couldn’t be it, since Lukluk wasn’t particularly anxious either. Maybe she had imagined it? But she’d never really panicked that bad before… What surprised her the most was the fact she was able to still think, despite her heart beating in her throat and her limbs shaking like leaves in the wind.

  Whatever was happening, she had to tell Birburelli. She pushed herself to the limit, forcing her jaw to open and calming her chattering teeth enough to be able to speak without biting her tongue. [color=tomato]“B… Birburelli, I, I, I h-heard-”[/color]

  At that moment, as Birburelly took one step towards Genesis, a massive shadow leaped out of the overgrowth, over Lukluk and tackled Birburelli to the ground, followed by several sickening cracks and a wet gurgle coming from her friend’s throat. 

  She couldn’t breathe, her eyes losing focus and her stomach suddenly feeling smaller than ever. 

  As she watched the large, scaly creature bite Birburelli’s throat out with its endless rows of razor sharp fangs, she realized that her muscles had relaxed now, and that she was just simply watching the scene unfold. 

  More bones breaking. The creature was using its taloned feet to rip into Birburelli’s flesh as he lay there, his empty eyes staring straight at Genesis’, blood pouring forth from his mouth, nose, eyes and ears. The creature’s beak opened and closed with loud clacking as it bit pieces out of the inside of Birburelli’s chest, feasting on her friend’s body. 

  She wanted to scream, she wanted to cry, she wanted to run, but… She couldn’t do anything but watch. She barely registered Lukluk’s panic as a loud screech filled the air as soon as Birburelli let out his last ragged, gurgled breath. From the canopies of the Muraymuna trees crashed down another creature straight onto Lukluk. This one had long leathery wings and sharp talons. It wasted no time, digging its talons into Lukluk’s back and flapping its powerful wings to take off, just in time to avoid the snapping beak of the terrestrial creature that had killed Birburelli. 

  As the flying creature took off, the beaked one let out a screech of its own. Its bloodied beak and neck glistened beneath the stray rays of sunlight that came through the canopies, and the feathers on the back of its head rustled not unlike a Sylphi’s leaves. 

  It focused its dark, beady eyes on Genesis and ran up to her in its strange bipedal gait, stopping only an inch off from her face to take a few sniffs. 

  She felt sick, seeing and feeling Birburelli’s warm blood drip onto her body straight from the thing’s beak. 

  She started to cry, finally. A few pitiful sobs coming from her mostly empty lungs, at least. The creature paid it no mind, instead curiously licking her face to taste her tears. It left behind a noxious mix of blood and bodily fluids smeared all over her face.

  Her dress rustled and struggled, trying to get her to stand up but it was no use. She cried harder. Her only friend was dead, and she had only watched as he was eaten alive. 
  
  She lost track of what was happening. Her tears stopped and so did her sobbing. Instead, she just stared at her friend’s body. At one point, the creature has lost interest in her and gone back to eating from her friend’s body, something that she couldn’t even comprehend anymore. 

[center][b]V[/b][/center]

  When she came back to, she noticed that both herself and her dress were clean, she noticed that nothing smelled like blood, and she didn’t see Birburelli or Lukluk anywhere. Instead, she was curled up into a ball in front of a small campfire. 

  The first thing she did was blink, as her eyes were awfully dry. After that, she stretched. It felt as if she hadn’t moved in weeks. Before she could contemplate her situation any further, a familiar face came out of the jungle overgrowth and into the camp. It was the Hunter she’d met before Birburelli and her had set off. She tried to remember what had happened after that morning, but her mind was foggy…

  The Hunter nodded at her and she for the first time saw a relieved smile on his face. It didn’t last long. “Good to see you’re back with me. You were gone for weeks.” 

  Genesis slowly tilted her head at the Hunter, then looked around as if expecting to see her friend and his donkey sitting around the campfire. She didn’t see them, so she looked back at the Hunter, who was now sitting next to her, holding a bone bowl full of clear water. He offered it to her, and she drank it all. 

  “You and your friend were attacked by two of the most dangerous predators in the area. Luckily for you, they were carnivorous… Safe to say we’re not made of stuff they like to eat. You friend, he-” 

  Genesis nearly choked on the water, coughed and perked up. [color=tomato]“B-Birburelli-”[/color] She said, her voice rougher than she remembered, [color=tomato]“He’s okay right? I had the worst nightmare... I-I don’t know what I’d do without him… He saved me when I was hurt, if he’s hurt now...”[/color] She explained, her eyes growing wet. She sobbed quietly and wiped her own eyes with the back of her hands. 

  The Hunter studied Genesis’ face, and then after a long while, he sighed and shook his head. “Your friend, Birburelli, he’s okay. He saved you again. If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn't have found you two. But you know, he finally realized that he couldn’t protect you. He almost died, you know. If any of those things they call Dircaans had gotten the drop on him, well-”

  [color=tomato]“So he’s okay,”[/color] Genesis sighed in relief, visibly relaxing. [color=tomato]“I’m glad he’s okay… But, but I don’t understand why he’d leave me without saying goodbye...”[/color] She said with a slight quiver to her voice. 

  “He knew you would have tried to stop him, plus you were in shock from the ordeal. It’s been weeks, Genesis. By now he’s probably somewhere neither of us have ever seen. He did tell me he had no set destination. That he’d go wherever the wind blew.” The Hunter said with a nod at the end of each of his sentences. 

  The Sylphi girl looked into the Hunter’s eyes for a long time, squinting her own slightly after a time, then looked away and into the fire. She handed him the bone bowl and asked. 

  [color=tomato]“So... Where are we going now, Hunter?”[/color]

[indent][list][*][hider=Summary]
Genesis and Birburelli reach Muraymuna. Here they meet One-Godders, and they almost start a conflict with Birburelli just because he is a Ritualist. After Genesis talks a bit to them and leaves them stunned after being able to meet a Sylphi up close, they leave. 

After the encounter they keep traveling through Muraymuna, partly in hopes of finding a fellow Sylphi. One night as they are asleep, Genesis is assaulted by an unknown figure wearing a mask, who uses some sort of device to peer into her mind. After several minutes of silent pain, she passes out. When she wakes up again she finds a Sylphi male sitting on a log near their camp, watching over her. She and the sylphi stranger talk for a bit and he introduces himself as just a Hunter. 

Once Birburelli wakes up, the Hunter asks him to allow her to go with him, as Sylphi cannot develop properly when brought up by a human, and Genesis was in a very crucial stage of development. Birburelli gives Genesis the choice of going with either of them and she obviously decides to go with Birburelli, so they leave. The Hunter follows for a little while but at some point he disappears. 
 
Hours later, Genesis, Lukluk and Birburelli are ambushed by two carnivorous Dircaans. The terrestrial one, with the back of his head feathered and a sharp beak, kill and eats Birburelli in front of Genesis as she’s frozen with fear. The other one, a winged Dircaan crashes onto Lukluk and digs its talons into the donkey before taking off again, bringing the donkey with it into the skies above the canopies of Muraymuna. Before long, she is left alone and broken, vacantly staring into the spot where Birburelli’s remains were left behind.

Weeks later, she recovers enough to realize she is nowhere near the place of the incident. She is clean and in front of a campfire. The Hunter comes out and explains to her that they were attacked by the Dircaans, but instead tells her that Birburelli “saved” her, and then when the Hunter found them, he left her behind as he had realized he couldn’t protect her anymore. 

Genesis chooses to trust the Hunter, her own memories foggy due to her trauma. In the end, she asks the Hunter where they were headed, accepting that she was now with him. Her dreams would never be the same, however.
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