As the journey continued, the kefi and beetle grew accustomed to and fond of each other. As they walked, Oxter scratched behind Cuddles’ antennae and kept an eye out perpetually for any hunks of wood or tasty morsels for his new friend.
Cuddles, for his part, grunted appreciatively when Oxter rubbed him. When they stopped for a brief rest, he searched for sticks and brought them to Ox to throw for him. He did a great deal of damage to the underbrush, but the bizarre scene brought some much-needed levity to the otherwise quiet, focused day.
Faslo made a point of checking on Oxter as they traveled. What he saw gratified him. Oxter no longer held up the group’s progress, and he seemed genuinely at his ease with the great busk and with the Pasgrota in general.
Quiet snippets of conversation from different spots in the column could be heard by a trained ear, but anyone else would think they were hearing leaves in the wind or other unimportant sounds.
Near sunset, Faslo called a halt when they reached a spot with heavy shrub cover and only one entrance or exit.
Oxter led Cuddles to a patch of greenery and let the beetle know it was time to lie down.
The group all settled into a tight circle as the light began to fade in earnest.
They each said good night and extinguished their lights. One by one, they each fell asleep. Poldi was the last one to close his eyes.
Oxter woke in the middle of the night with the grim certainty that something wasn’t right.
Cuddles slept peacefully against his back. Oxter thought he’d felt something rough and unfamiliar brush against his face.
He sat up and fumbled for his glasses. He managed to find them, but it was still too dark to see a thing. With a strange sense of urgency, he fumbled in his pack for a few desperate minutes.
He almost panicked until his hand found the handle of the item he was looking for.
With a muffled grunt, he pulled the cylinder from his pack and turned it around once, and grabbed the trigger portion, pulling it up and down rapidly with all his might, once, twice, three times- FOOM!
The inky blackness in front of him parted to either side of a giant jet of flame.
It revealed two enormous black eyes, and a long ghostly white snout ending in jagged rows of sharp crooked teeth. A hideous ringleted tail whipped the air behind it.
The huge bulk of the pungdur1 slithered past Ox, thrusting gnarled claws into the dark in front of it.
Ox heard a scuffle, and then a startled scream. Kai’s terrified face slid past him as the pungdur dragged him effortlessly into the greater darkness.
Ox managed to find his voice, screaming out
“FASLO! COLLOP! POLDI! WAKE UP NOW, FASK IT, NOW!! WAKE THE FASK UP!!”
The camp was suddenly alive with shouts and motion.
Faslo jumped to his feet, throwing off his sleeping cloak while simultaneously flinging his skeen at the back of the departing creature. An angry hiss proved he found his target. Swinging his bow up into position, he loosed several shafts at the creature’s back.
Collop ran past him, grabbing hold of the swinging tail and dragging it to the earth will all his might.
With a hissing roar, the possum wheeled back around to attack.
Poldi roared back and charged full force at the creature, his khev brandished over his head.
Before the creature could react, Poldi’s khev slashed down, severing the pungdur’s paw with a hollow thunk.
The creature screeched in agony, dropping Kai and fleeing full speed into the darkness.
Collop and Faslo helped Kai to his feet and made sure he didn’t have any serious injuries.
Faslo turned to check on Oxter.
The light-haired Kefi lay in a heap against the smooth back of the beetle, unconscious from the strain of the nightmarish events.
Faslo roused him just long enough to make sure he was okay.
“Ox? Ox, are you okay? Thank you for waking us. Kai would be dead if you hadn’t. We owe you now. What can we do to repay you?”
Ox groaned and managed to pull himself groggily up on one arm.
“I didn’t do anything special, Fas. Let me find a safer place for us to sleep tomorrow. I’m not going through that ever again.”
Faslo laughed at that.
“Done, old friend.”
Ox smiled, fell backwards onto Cuddles, and immediately fell fast asleep.
Kefita for possum.