《Behemoth - HIATUS》Chapter 3 - The Humans
Advertisement
As he walked back to the clearing with the bodies, he began to notice some other sensations that he had missed earlier. The temperature had increased since he first emerged from the pyramid and he was starting to feel marginally uncomfortable with a few beads of sweat forming on his brow. His clothes had also started clinging to him and a foul odour was wafting up to his nostrils.
His clothes. Distracted by his unexpected height and size, he hadn't paid attention to his clothes earlier. Now, as he looked down, he saw that his torso was covered by what seemed to be a dirty, bloody rag with two holes from which his arms emerged. He was also wearing what could have once been trousers but they too were ragged and bloody.
As he broke into the clearing, he thought that he should just remove his shift as it wasn't serving any purpose in the heat and the odour was in fact a hindrance. Upon removing the offending garment, he felt a slight shyness which seemed to come from an unknown recess of his mind and was irrational as there was not a soul around. He decided to leave his trousers for when he did finally someone.
He stopped walking when he reached the pile of bodies. Since emerging from the flotsam of viscera, he had consciously avoided looking in it its direction for fear of the old panic rising again. But now, he felt sure enough and curious enough to try and see if he could jog his memories by taking in the macabre sight.
The first thing he noticed was that all the bodies seemed to be of 'normal' height that is to say, almost half his height. It struck him that the pyramid was actually stacked quite high as the top of it, where he had emerged from, was above his eye line.
Advertisement
Whoever these poor souls were had been brutally cut down. The lower levels of bodies had been decapitated and in some cases intestines and limbs were thrown about. In the upper layers, the bodies were whole but from the visages of the dead it was clear that they had not died pleasant deaths. The bodies were mostly naked from waist up although a few of them seemed to be wearing a sort of leathery chemise. From the few patches of skin that were not covered by grime or blood or gore, it seemed that at least a few of the dead had the same greyish brown skin colour as he did. There did not seem to be any weapons near the pyramid so it was likely that the dead had not been soldiers. Although, he mused, it was possible that the killers had simply carted off the weapons of the fallen for re-use.
His observation on some of the bodies' skin colour had sparked off another line of thinking - when he had seen his own hands and legs he had been surprised by the size but not by the colour. So, it stood to reason, that his skin colour was at least something that his memory-deprived brain recognised as his. He promised himself that even though he couldn't remember anything, he would try to keep an open mind about everything he saw from now on and observe how his brain responded to the stimuli. Maybe, through those observations he could piece together his history.
After a while, a breeze blowing into him brought with it the full force of the smell of rotting flesh and he had to turn away sharply to control his stomach. This act brought on another wave of hunger and nausea...the hunger was more urgent this time. With the rising temperature and passing time, he realised that he would need food and water soon or risk losing all his energy.
Advertisement
He took a final look around the clearing in case he had missed any tool that would be useful, but there didn't seem to be anything worthwhile. He now had a choice of direction in which to walk. The clearing extended in two opposite directions but it was difficult to determine much more than that. One path however, did seem to be sloping slightly downhill while the other was uphill. He figured that he had a better chance of finding habitation in the plains and so decided to walk downhill. His choice was in no small part also affected by his fast-depleting lack of energy.
The path was fairly straight, rocky and long. At no point did the scenery change perceptibly except that once in a while he would hear a bird or a monkey or some creature screeching in the forest to his sides and then all would be quiet again. The temperature had risen considerably and the sun was no overhead. Its rays were beating down on his head and he was sweating profusely. He knew he was in a bad shape because the edges of his vision had started blurring and he could feel that his body temperature had risen to uncomfortable levels. He needed water, rest and food...urgently.
After what felt like hours, there was finally a change in the path. The gradient in front of him suddenly steepened downwards. He came to a stop and looked around. The forest to his side had also suddenly dipped and that allowed him to peek over the tops of trees due to his height. What he saw to his right was a relatively flat land till the horizon with a lot of forested area but more importantly what looked like farmland and houses and a river! On his left side the flat land seemed to slope upwards gradually and then rapidly until it was crested by massive mountains. The tops of these mountains were covered with clouds although some seemed to be snow-capped.
He almost stumbled down the sloping path in his rush to reach the river. After slipping and sliding his way to the bottom of the gradient he turned right and sprinted in the direction of the river, all his previous exhaustion forgotten. The water of the river had looked impossibly blue and inviting.
Finally, he saw the river in front of him. It was a wide, but gently moving thing making a noticeable gurgling sound. He abandoned caution and leapt into it. The impossibly cool water was the best relief from the heat that had been pervasive earlier. He felt his exhaustion slide off as he floated and swam. He realised later that he didn't need to swim - standing upright, his chest upwards was above the water.
After he had cooled down, slaked his thirst and cleaned himself to the best of his abilities, he waded to the riverbank and sat down with his long legs still half submerged in the water. He closed his eyes and felt the stress and tension of his cruel awakening ease away as the sun warmed his wet body.
All of a sudden he heard loud, shocked voices behind him. Heart thudding, he opened his eyes, whipped around and leapt to his feet. He found himself towering over three 'humans' whose eyes were wide and were making noises of shock, excitement and fear as they took in the sight of the giant before him.
He raised both his hands in a concilliatory way and said, "Hello...I mean you no harm..."
Advertisement
- In Serial112 Chapters
An Adventure Beyond Greatness!
Alex was a bullied high-school student with high sense of morality and a guy who believed in having a firm heart due to his martial art heritage. One day after being beaten unconscious at school he suddenly wakes up to find himself in a mysterious library, but before he could digest his situation, a woman he had never met before reincarnated him into a world of swords and magic. Fifteen years after his reincarnation he visits the great kingdom of Lancia to reunite with his comrade and childhood friend. However, things quickly fall out of place as he meets an old enemy who had apparently 'reformed' and became a good person after their last encounter including the crown prince of the kingdom itself. This is ignoring the Ascenders in the shadows...! What are their goals and how is he related to them? What is to happen in this tale of Hidden Dragons and ACTUAL Dragons? Guess it's all in Alex's hands... ———I am posting this on other sites.
8 202 - In Serial179 Chapters
Isekai'D Shoggoth
It begins as a usual isekai story.No, wait. It's worse. It's otome isekai. And I'm the villain.Of course, there must be some kind of cheat to make up for it. It's that kind of story.And my cheat is... being a shoggoth. Which apparently includes being a genius with setting up all sorts of production. Because "engineered to be universal labor" backstory for that race, I surmise.So... Screw it, full steam ahead. Let`s see what I can make out of this world and it's ikebana-based magic. (This is a mirror. Original was posted at https://www.scribblehub.com/series/117113/isekaid-shoggoth/ - As of Sept 2, this copy had been fully synchronised with original posting.)
8 2754 - In Serial16 Chapters
B R I C K
B R I C K: A comedy about a Brick. Titular protagonist Brick usually keeps to their own, away from the prying eyes of the Enemy or rather, everyone. They're a Brick. But one day, Brick's bound to a mysterious being. Ribbon. Brick was always alone, isolated from the realm, but things are starting to heat up again. What does a Brick do now that he's got a Ribbon? Out of touch and out of date, what does Brick do in this changed realm? NOTE: Brick is in fact a brick. And the weary may not believe it, but likewise, Ribbon, is a ribbon. Expect a comedy dynamic between a brick and virtually every other race in the realm.
8 178 - In Serial24 Chapters
The Heart of Alastair
Icara, the princess turned escaped slave and wanted criminal, returns to her homeland after being away for ten years. Upon her return, she soon finds the crestfallen knight from a foreign kingdom, Gwindon. Both of them have come to Alastair's Heart to struggle against something from their past. They work together to achieve their goals, finding Gwindon's missing wife and leader of a mercenary crew, and to kill the man that sent Icara away and framed her in the first place. Unfortunately for them, that man has become king of her homeland, and has plans of his own to deal with her.
8 92 - In Serial11 Chapters
LUNA: WHAT HAPPENED LAST NIGHT?
What happened last night? How unlucky she was to wake with a spear on her neck? And what language are they talking about? Did she just witness a wizard in a nightgown enchanting the shrubs? But that's not the important thing right now. What she really wanted to know is, what happened last night? So Luna embarked on a magical adventure to find out what misfortune had fallen upon her that she had to fight skeletons, monsters, dragons, and villains to stay alive. Was her destiny much bigger than an accidental summoning? Perhaps, she was chosen by gods to save the continence, or perhaps, she will deny her fate and have a cup of tea with the dragon instead? "With this Blade of Fate, I will decide my own destiny", she whispered to the man pinned on the wall, her sword against his neck. Disclaimer : I do not own anyrright to the photo. Kindly PM me if you want me to remove the picture. Taken from Pinterest, Fantasy Art by Z. W. GU
8 97 - In Serial16 Chapters
One bowl of Spicy Noodles
It's a fluffy SpicyNoodleshipping fic! Yes, it's Red Son x MK.I'll be posting it to AO3 so more people can enjoy it soon!Cover made by colesmonkies on instagram at. https://instagram.com/colesmonkies_?igshid=4be7tw2191je
8 197

