Staring at Jake and Mason as if they were ghosts, the Kobolds as one took a step back. Then they waited, not lowering their makeshift weapons one bit.

"Help? Where the hell did you pop up from?" The tall, copper-colored female asked.

"We got lost in the jungle when we ran from a horde of rats." Emma, in a soft and high pitched voice, was the first to respond, causing the female Kobold to focus on her.

"Is this the right time to be talking about this?" Jake asked before turning his attention to the group of Goblins that were spreading out, blocking any route for escape bar the river.

Mason and Jake exchanged a glance before backing up a few steps and ignoring the other Kobolds.

"So I guess the military followed orders?" Mason spat out, fixating one of the Goblins with an angry stare. As he did, his vertical pupils dilated like those of a reptile.

The Goblin froze, a startled look crossing his yellow face while his black overly large eyes widened. Then he shook himself and his thin lips curved into a mocking smile showcasing a row of sharp teeth.

"Think you are smart, do ya? You should have just done the same! You're gonna find out why you rebelling was stupid!!" The Goblin spat back, a cruel laugh following shortly after. The other Goblins were quick to follow him, and a cascade of manic laughter broke the relative silence of the jungle. Almost as one, they shut up again and then started moving towards the Kobolds.

Mason replied with a grin that didn't reach his eyes before taking a sudden step forward, his chest puffing out like a smith's bellows. Opening his mouth, he roared at the Goblins. The sound was so loud and harsh that it startled even Mason himself and for the first time caused bird-like creatures to fly up from the nearby jungle. The other Kobolds looked at him in confusion and shock, before admiration crossed the faces of the smaller Kobolds faces. Jake grinned, giving his friend a thumbs up.

The Goblins reacted as if someone had punched them in the face, jumping back and some even toppling over. The entire menacing atmosphere was lost as they scrambled to get some distance between themselves and the golden-scaled, barely clothed Kobold.

----

Deep inside the jungle, amongst the treetops, three rapidly moving figures came to a full stop. They looked around in confusion before one pointed to the side. They immediately began rushing along the branches in that direction.

----

"NOW!" The female Kobold didn't wait for the effect of Mason's stunning shout to end and rushed towards the Goblins, who were still standing around in disarray. Jake and Mason had started moving at the same time as the female Kobold, and the other Kobolds of her group followed behind the trio. Even Emma rushed forward, staying close to Jake, but seeming as ferocious as the adults.

Jake crashed into one of the Goblins that had managed to remain on his feet, knocking him over before barrelling into a second Goblin that had been on the ground and trying to get back up. Using the long talons on his feet, Jake kicked at the smaller creature as it tried to crawl away from him. Like daggers, his nails ripped into its face and hastily raised arms causing blood to spurt out.

Beside him, Mason had picked up one of the Goblins and was holding him in a stranglehold, its feet kicking around in the air trying to find a foothold. A snap sounded, and the Goblin stopped moving. Grinning like a madman, Mason tossed the Goblins towards two others before rushing after it.

At the side, the military Kobolds were making short work of the Goblins and working together they used their sticks to beat their smaller assailants to the ground.

"BACK! Run back to the boss! We come back and find them later!" A high pitched guttural scream came from one of the Goblins, and without waiting for his friends, he turned around, rushing back towards the jungle.

The only three Goblins that were not being held down by Kobolds rushed after him, one moving on all fours in his haste to flee. None of them looked behind, and the other's they were leaving behind.

Seeing the Goblins flee, Jake looked at the struggling Goblin still in his grip. He was unsure if he should let the thing go as he wasn't a direct threat anymore, and a distant echo of his past called for him to release his hold on the Goblin. Then from the place deep inside him, one he was starting to associate with his inner Kobold, a surge of deep-seated anger and loathing flowed. A cold sheen crossed his eyes, and with a small jerk of his claw, he ripped the Goblins throat out. Greenish blood splattered about his chest, and the Goblins eyes became large in shock, pain, and fear, but Jake ignored all of it, dropping the bleeding body to the ground.

Looking around to assess the situation, he saw that three mangled Goblins were lying next to the female Kobold leader of the other group. Her trio of followers had managed to kill another two.

Mason was standing close to him, four unmoving shapes and an ever-increasing pool of blood surrounding him.

Emma had been fighting with the Goblin that ended up causing their enemies to flee after having bitten off some of his fingers and almost ripping out one of his eyes.

Feeling the battle-rush fade, Jake wondered if he would ever be able to control it. Shrugging to himself, he looked at the leader of the other group. After the battle, something had changed although he wasn't sure exactly what, it felt like they were almost connected. Pushing away from the unrealistic feeling, figuring it was just his mind playing tricks on him, he moved towards the tall female Kobold.

"Do you know what that Boss is he was talking about?" Jake asked, staying some distance away so as not to antagonize the other.

The female Kobold did not reply immediately, still looking at the dense jungle the Goblins had disappeared into, her extra eyelids still covering her eyes. After she seemed sure they wouldn't pop back out, she turned to Jake, and the semi-transparent layers retreated behind her eyes.

"Who are you? And how did you get here?"

Annoyed, Jake was about to say something when Mason beat him to it. Standing besides Jake, he sneered.

"Didn't your mother ever tell you it is impolite to answer a question with another question?"

Her eyes narrowing the female Kobold stared straight at him.

"She did. And she also told me not to talk to strange men. Or stupid ones..."

Feeling the atmosphere change, and grow thick with tension, Jake took a step back, looked at the reactions of the others. The small kobolds were standing close together, close to where he was standing, their eyes focused on Mason, appearing ready to jump in if he made any sudden moves. Getting the feeling, he forgot something; Jake realized what it was almost instantly. Where was Emma? Looking around in a rush, he spotting her after a second. She standing some distance behind him, closer to the river then he liked, next to the Fiend that he had managed to forget about somehow.

"Emma, be careful. She is like David!" Jake blurted out, rushing forward. The three Kobolds stepped forward, intercepting him and the green one raised a finger threateningly.

"Don't move."

Seeing his path blocked, Jake felt his anger rise again, fueled by fear for Emma's safety. A low growl emanating from his chest caused the three Kobolds to jump back and stand at the ready, their wooden clubs raised.

"ENOUGH!" A deep, husky voice caused the Kobolds to stop in their tracks. The Fiend moved forward, an annoyed look on her alien face and she stepped between the two parties.

"Are you people for real? You are all acting like you just got a shot of testosterone or something!" Giving the three Kobolds an annoyed sneer, she looked at Jake for a moment unhidden contempt on her face.

Jake looked back, noticing the Fiend was holding Emma's hand. He was about to say something about it when he saw that the little Kobold seemed perfectly fine with the current situation. She wasn't being forced but seemed more curious at what was going on.

"I won't harm your friend, and neither will we start fighting! Sandra!" The last part she bit out in short words, aimed at Mason and the female Kobold who had been circling each other threateningly.

It didn't have the intended effect, however, as both didn't give her even the slightest attention only keeping their eyes on each other. Knowing that his friend wasn't going to back down first, Jake moved toward him, slowly so the others wouldn't get the wrong idea.

"Mason, easy. You know it isn't right to bully girls!"

A startled snort came from Sandra, and she shot him an annoyed glare, her first time breaking the staring contest she had with Mason.

Mason stopped moving, and all of a sudden, a small lowpitched giggle sounded. Placing a golden scaled hand in front of his mouth didn't help at all, and Mason's smothered laughter caused everyone to look at him in utter confusion. Everyone besides Jake.

"Pffft, you're telling me not to bully her? She is practically bigger than I am! She is bigger then auntie Dora at the cafeteria!"

Jake sighed, shaking his head. He knew Mason wasn't angry anymore, and probably hadn't been from the start, but why did he always have to act so weird in the end? Grabbing Mason's arm, Jake dragged him towards the Fiend and Emma. As he did, he took a peek over his shoulder to make sure Sandra wasn't coming after them. Luckily she had stopped looking like a volcano about to explode and was walking after them with slightly raised eyebrows and a tight smile around her lips.

"So, now that we are all done with this charade, how about I tell you how we got here and then you can do the same?" The Fiend said, looking at Jake. Seeing his short nod, she smiled, finally stopping her perpetual glaring.

"Good! My name is Altessalia, but you can call me Tess." Seeing Jake and Mason's look, her smile widened to a grin. "My mother likes unique names."

"My colleagues and I were in Eastern Europe, trying to find more information about what is happening. We got stranded in the middle of nowhere's land during the change, together with the army unit designated to guard us." She nodded towards Sandra.

"Some of us, as you can see, didn't follow protocol, and this caused a small disagreement. When words failed to placate the situation, we had to take our refuge inside this jungle." Getting carried away with her explanation, the Fiend started gesturing wildly and pointed at the jungle before looking there as if to be dramatic. As soon as she did, her eyes widened, and her hand froze before she looked at Jake.

"Not to be a buzzkill. But if you have more friends with you, perhaps you should call them over? That way, I don't have to tell this story twice."