Felicia startled awake with a yelp, scattering the group of Elves who had been surrounding her. Groggily, she looked around in an attempt to piece together what had happened to her. She was in the hut that she shared with Serena, but there was no sight of the Owl-Kin. One of the Elves scuttled forwards, and chirped at her. She took a moment to understand what he had said. Clearing her throat, she hooted back towards the Elf.

“Speak again?” The Elf turned one of his eyes towards Felicia, staring into hers. Blinking, the Elf bobbed his head sharply, like a bird.

“Half-Beast Fox. Elder speak. Bring Half-Beast Owl. Half-Beast Owl with God-ling.” With that, the group of Elves scattered. Felicia sighed, rubbing her eyes. I hate dealing with these Elves. They make no sense. Who in the Hells is this Godli- Felicia froze, memories bubbling forth from the back of her consciousness. A man, come back from the dead, with multiple masteries in magic.

Felicia surged to her feet and dashed out of the hut. Frantic, she looked around, trying to find her charge. The Fox-Kin did not know what would happen when her Lady and the Mageous were reunited, but she knew that it would not end well. She was scared for her Lady, for Felicia did not want Serena to do anything dangerous to herself.

She noticed a group of Elves ringing where she thought the Mystic Beast and the Mageous were sitting at before, and she immediately rushed over to see what was going on. The Elves chirped when they saw her, but then they noticed her running at them with murder in her eyes, they quickly scattered. When Felicia was able to see the figures huddled around the roaring fire, she froze, her mouth opening and closing in shock.

The Mystic Beast, Mizutsune, was staring at two figures wrapped around in a lover’s embrace, his sapphire eyes glinting in mirth from the reflected firelight. But what drew Felicia’s attention were the two. Large brown and white wings were wrapped tightly around a sitting figure, long pale legs poking from the bundle of feathers. Dainty arms were wrapped around the figures neck, and her innocent Lady Serena’s head was resting on the figure’s shoulder, a content smile gracing her lips.

The figure slowly turned his head towards Felicia, and stared at her with bloodshot hazel eyes. He opened his mouth and whispered, so softly that she could not hear. But the meaning was clear.

“Help me.”

_______________________________________________________________

Jake took a drag, feeling the toxic smoke enter into his lunges, and exhaled with a sigh. Serena had woken up on her own, and when she noticed her position, quickly extracted herself and sprinted back to her hut, blushing furiously. Felicia glared daggers at him, and went to comfort the Owl-Kin.

Sighing again, he rubbed at his aching eyes. He had been unable to get any sleep after Serena had kissed him, for she had decided at that moment to go back to sleep. Still reeling from the unexpected kiss, the Owl-Kin had been able to wrap herself around him and promptly went to sleep. Miztusune had found the entire situation hilarious, and Jake had made a point to ignore all messages from the loli-goddess.

Jake had spent the entire night, or at least what he assumed was the night, awake. He could not move more than a few inches before Serena would snuggle in closer. Since he had come to this world, he had bathed in the blood of his enemies, killing all in his path with impunity. But this small girl scared him more than anything else within this world or his own.

He had no experience with how to deal with something like this. Sure, he had a few one night stands to scratch the itch, as it were, but nothing lasting. Back on Earth, he did not want anything more than a casual fling, since he would normally be away from home for months to years at a time. It would have been a horrible way to raise a child, not knowing when he would be able to return.

And even now, he doubted he would be a good father, or husband. He could not see himself caring for someone while being hunted down by the entirety of the intelligent races of Laeris, let alone raising a child.

Shaking his head to break away from those thoughts, Jake took another drag and flicked the butt over the side of the flat. Grabbing another cigarette, he lit up and went back to sitting at the bonfire. Apparently, due to the dark nature of the Dark Woods, the Elves kept the fires around the flats lit at all times, to provide light for those who were not sleeping.

Mizutsune quirked open an eye from where he was lying next to the fire. Yawning, the fox stood up and stretched his back, his rear raised into the air. Shaking the last bits of sleep out of his system, Mizutsune trotted over to Jake and sat next to his Master.

“Master.” Mizutsune’s voice broke through Jake’s thoughts. “Why are you still thinking about that situation? Congratulations, you have gained an admirer. Just mate with the owlet and be done with it.” The fox stared at the human, unblinking. “Why are you agonizing over this, Master? It is likely that she won’t live long enough to bear you any children, anyways. We have a mission to complete, and it will more than likely cost many lives.”

Sighing, Jake scratched at the stubble on his neck. “It’s not that easy, Mizu.” He took a drag, allowing the nicotine to help sooth his nerves. Exhaling, he looked down at his fox. “Would you be able to kill off Felicia? Just to make things easier for you?” Mizutsune blinked, his sapphire eyes hard.

“Of course. It is the way of nature.” His response made Jake pause and stare at the fox. “If something is in the way of what we require, then it must be eliminated. My feelings have no matter in the subject. If the vixen wants to survive, then she must be with us.”

“That’s… pretty brutal of you.” Jake said, taking another drag.

Mizutsune shrugged. “What do you expect, Master? I am a beast, after all.”

Jake grunted, and looked around the flat. With only the light of the bonfires to see by in the darkness, Jake noticed a few oddities. All of the Elves that he had seen appeared men. There were no women that were wandering around the flats. Not only that, but most of the Elves that he could see were armed with spears and bows.

Jake hummed to himself, and turned back to Mizutsune. “On a different topic, why are all the Elves here using weapons? Didn’t the Beast-Kin say that they were supposed to be masters of magic or something?”

Taking a lazy look around, Mizutsune shrugged. “Most of the male Long-Ears have no abilities in magic. That lies squarely with the females, who act as teachers and the leading body for these people. At the very least, this is what the vixen explained to the owlet.”

Jake blinked, confused. “If the women are the leaders for the Elves, why are Serena and Felicia speaking with that old Elf guy?”

Mizutsune shrugged again. “I did not care to ask, Master.”

“Of course you didn’t” Jake sighed, and stood up. Finishing off the cigarette, he flicked it into the flames. Turning back to the fox, he jerked his head to gesture over his shoulder. “Want to go explore?”

Mizutsune swished his tails a few times, thinking over the idea. “I do not, Master. I believe that it would be better for me to wait here. If the two Half-Beasts ask questions, I will be able to answer them. Hopefully, in a better way than you did last night.” His sapphire eyes twinkled with mirth as he reminded Jake of the fact. “I am surprised that you were able to get the Long-Ears to take the vixen back to her hut.”

“It helps to know the language, I guess. And that they consider me a God.” Jake grunted back, already walking away. Let me know if they ask anything too direct. He sent to the fox, already thinking of where to go in this glorified tree house.

“Of course, Master. Try not to make any new ‘friends’, yes? We don’t want to tip our hand this early.” Mizutsune’s cold voice bound through his head, and all Jake could do was respond with a sigh.

_____________________________________________________________

Jake had been wandering for the better part of an hour, just seeing the sights. He had no opportunity to wander around the Beast-Kin city, and he had been kicking himself for neglecting to experience a ‘fantasy city’. And this Enclave was very impressive. If he had to describe it to someone back on Earth, he would say that it reminded him of Kashyyyk, the homeworld of the towering furry Chewbacca.

The massive Elderwood trees towered into the sky, and flats ringed most of them on different levels on the branch. Bridges created from woven plant fiber and planks of some type of dark wood connected the different flats, creating a maze that spanned the entire ‘city’.

On these flats were an assortment of homes, bonfires and a few stores, for lack of a better word. The stores were just a hut with an open wall, where the Elf would freely give away whatever they were marketing. One that the wandering human had come across was giving away slices of roasted meat that gave off a delicious aroma of spice and smoke.

When Jake had asked how much, the Elf had simply blinked his third eyelid and responded with, ”No pay. No need. Make food, you eat.” And with that, the Elf had dropped a few skewers of the meat into his hands. And it was delicious.

Jake was wandering around, munching on a [Flambéed Twin-Headed Quail Leg] as he went, when the sounds of combat reached his ears. Finishing off the leg and tossing the bone off the side of the flat, he went to investigate.

On one of the flats underneath his and on an adjacent tree, two groups of Elves were fighting against each other. They worked in tandem with each other, where one would stab out with his spear and the two beside him would protect with leather-bound shields. It was effective, but Jake had a feeling that they would be far more efficient if they were attacking from surprise. The Elves were fast enough to make very good guerrilla fighters, darting in and back out before the foe could mount a decent defense.

Shrugging, Jake grabbed a cigarette from his inventory and lit up, resuming his wanderings. He had been looking for someone giving away any alcohol, but so far he had been out of luck. He had found a lot of food, though. And most of it was quite good, except for a few of the vegetable dishes that were being served.

Letting out a cloud of smoke, Jake looked around at the other flats, including above and below. If I were a bar in a magical forest, where would I be? Or super powerful Amazonian women that apparently rule the men with an iron fist. Jake pondered for a second, then shrugged. Probably from the very top, so I can look down on all those below me.

With a thought, black tendrils exploded from his shoulder blades and began to contort into fleshy wings, scattering the Elves that were around him. Taking a running start, Jake leapt over the side of the flat, wings spread to catch the wind. The Elves that were staring at him with a mix of horror and fascination ran to the edge and peered downwards, chittering to each other. They scattered again as the human with wings rocketed upwards, carrying himself on a column of warm air.

Ignoring the Elves, Jake looked around, beating his wings occasionally to correct his ascent. There were tens, possibly hundreds, of flats spread throughout the trees, and he noticed thousands upon thousands of Elves scurrying back and forth on them. Jesus. Elven hordes indeed. Glancing around, he didn’t see anything that screamed out magical yet, or anything that resembled a bar, so he decided to ask the natives..

Angling himself towards a flat, he mixed between gliding and beating his wings furiously. He still did not understand the fundamentals of flying, but he thought that he was getting there. As he approached the flat, he flared out his wings like he had seen birds do, and landed somewhat gracefully. The Elves that were in his way chittered and scattered when he landed, before stopping a distance away and staring at him.

Extinguishing the magic that surrounded him, he turned to one of the Elves that were looking at him with wonder. “Hey, is there any place here that I can get a drink? If not, where do you guys learn magic?”

The Elf that was pointed out tried to shuffle away, but was brought forward by the Elves around him. With fear in his eyes, the Elf slowly approached, his back bent down. “Magic-man, drink kind?” He asked quietly, his voice soft and slightly wavering.

Umm, shit. “Alcoholic? Something that makes you feel good?” Hopefully that translates well. I have no idea how this translation thing works.

The Elf stared at him for a few seconds, his third eyelid sliding over his eye quickly. “Feel good? Fire water?”

Jake returned the blink, thinking. Shrugging, he nodded. “Sure, fire water.”

The Elf raised a shaking hand and pointed to a flat above and three trees over. “Speak Terina. Give fire water. Large hut.” With that, the Elf scampered back to the safety of his peers, and stared at the human.

Nodding at the Elf, he reactivated his [Shadow Ascent], his dark wings forming quickly. With a wave, he leapt into the expanse between trees. Angling himself towards the tree that the Elf had pointed out, he began to climb.

Minutes later, he had touched down on the flat designated, albeit far less gracefully than he did the last time, twisting his ankle in the landing. Grumbling to himself, he limped over to one of the Elves that were staring at him. With a wave, he dispelled the magic and his wings turned into wisps of black smoke that dispersed into the twilight. “You.” He growled at an Elf, who flinched and tried to run away, but was again stopped by those on his sides. “Where is Terina? The one who has fire water?”

The Elf gulped, and raised a shaking hand to point to a large hut towards one side of the tree. “Terina there. Much fire water.”

“Thanks.” With that, Jake began to limp in the general direction, ignoring the stares of the Elves that he passed. Like insects. Terrified insects. Jesus, I don’t even want to know what the women are like. With that terrifying thought, he walked to the large, open face hut. Benches and tables were situated out front, and a small group of Elves were situated around the tables, drinking from what appeared to be fruits.

The Elves stared at him as he approached, chittering to each other. Ignoring them, he walked over to where the front bar would be in most establishments, and looked around. There was no one manning the ‘bar’, so he decided to knock lightly on the wood.

“Hello? Is there a… Terina here?” He questioned the empty hut, and the Elves behind him began to chitter with force. He was able to make out a few words, mostly along the lines of ‘Strange-one’ and ‘Scare me’.

Glancing back at the Elves, Jake was shocked to see that most of them had run away. Only two were left, and they were at the farthest table away and cringing in fear. What the- Before he could finish his thought, the sound of splintering wood brought his gaze back towards the hut. He came face to face with something that made him stop and stare.

The Elf that had emerged looked… different, from all of its brethren. It was not crooked and hunched like the male Elves had been, and stood strait. It had four eyes on its slanted face, the regular two and two smaller ones above and behind them, giving it the appearance of an arachnid. It was wearing a thick apron, masking most of its figure. A ridge of spikes traveled down its back, and moved occasionally. Unlike the other Elves, this one was hairless, as if they shaved regularly. But what made him look more were the lines of runes. Hundreds of runes slowly writhed and twirled over the Elf’s body in glowing red lines, and Jake was fascinated by them.

“Yeah? What you want?” The Elf’s voice, softer than any of the others, seemed to echo with a built in power, and the words that it spoke were far more pleasant to hear than the butchered sentences of the others.

Closing his gaping mouth with a snap, Jake nodded at the Elf. “Yes, I was told that you have fire water? I believe that they said that it was alcoholic, if that makes any sense to you.”

The Elf quirked one of their eye-ridges, before speaking. “Fire water? You mean booze? Comin’ right up.” It turned around, grabbing a gourd from the wall behind her. Turning back around, it handed the gourd to Jake. “That’d be three silver.” Jake paused, looking at the Elf. It shrugged in return. “I only charge outsiders, since this lot tends to not carry any money. Sure, they repay what they drink with work, but I need to make a living, you know?” It nodded toward the gourd. “Enjoy that. I got the recipe from an old Orc brew-master. Pretty strong stuff.”

Jake reached into his inventory and pulled out the requested silver. Clunking them onto the bar, he nodded at the Elf. “Thanks. Sorry that I seemed to have scared off your customers.” He glanced back, and even the two Elves that had been there previously have scampered off, leaving their empty gourds on the table.

The Elf waved its hand. “It’s fine. The males are normally very skittish around outsiders. Go get a table, and I’ll meet you there.” Nodding at the Elf, Jake turned around and sat at a table as the Elf turned back to its hut. He placed the gourd on a table, and gave it a sniff, moaning slightly. The smell burned his nostrils, and he could already tell that it was going to be good.

Placing his arms on the table, he leaned forwards, thinking. It said the males were skittish. So is this what the females look like? Makes sense, I guess. Definitely not going to ask her/it about it, though.

With a sigh, Terina sat down opposite him, holding her own gourd. “So, what’s a light-skin like you doing in our fine Enclave?” She quirked an eye ridge at the human, and took a swig of her gourd.

Following her lead, Jake took a draw on the gourd. Swallowing the burning liquid quickly, he pounded on his chest with a fist to help him breath again. After his throat decided to work again, he let out a sigh while shooting the Elf a grin. “Good stuff.” Terina smiled slightly, showing off her needle-like teeth, and nodded at him to continue. “Well, I’m officially part of the Beast-Kin delegation that was sent here to secure trade between the people.” He took another swig, the liquid going down a little bit easier this time.

Terina drummed her fingers on the table, the runes lighting up occasionally. “But, you’re no Half-Beast.”

Jake shook his head in the negative, grabbing a cigarette from his inventory. Offering it to Terina, who gracefully declined, he lit up and took a drag. Letting the smoke out with a sigh, he responded to the Elf’s statement. “I’m something… else.” He shot a cocky grin at the Elf, who snorted into her gourd.

“Alright, if you want to be mysterious, I’ll let you.” Taking another chug, the Elf sighed and placed the gourd onto the table. Leaning forwards, she regarded the human with her four eyes. “So, ‘Something-Else’, what can you tell me about yourself?”

Jake took a swig followed by a drag on his cigarette, feeling the alcohol start to numb his nerves. Exhaling the cloud of smoke, he scratched at the stubble on his neck. “Well, since you asked so kindly, I am a Master of three different forms of Magic.” Hopefully I read the situation right. I still need to learn more about the magic of this world. Like, I don’t know, what the hell is up with the glowy runes if all magic is based off of thought?

Terina blinked two of her eyes, the smaller ones remained open and staring at him. Freaky. Then she burst into laughter. After a few moments when the Elf had calmed down enough to speak, she wiped a tear from her eye and looked back at him with a smile. “Thank you for that. It’s rare to get someone new, and rarer still for them to have a sense of humor.” Still chuckling, she shook her head at him. “I don’t know what it is about you, Something-Else, but I like you. What’s your name?”

Jake smiled back. He didn’t know what was going on either, but he was really starting to feel the alcohol and it was making him very happy. “You can call me Jake.”