rework] Minglings - chapter 32: Troubles abound

The sun rose slowly in the sky, lighting up over the jungle, as Jake stared at the distant horizon from his perch atop the immense tree. Tir and Ter weren't with him but still sleeping with Emma in a cabin. To his surprise and slight jealousy, Mason and Sandra had disappeared inside another one. He had gone up here so he didn't have to listen to the sounds the two were making.

More than a day, but less than a week, huh? he thought, trying to focus on something else.

That was as long as Bolyr had said Mason and Sandra had before they would turn. Besides that lovely news, Emma had shocked everyone when she told them she had her first nightmare a day ago. Even Bolyr had been startled. According to him, this had never happened before. The change always came in adulthood, with the earliest known cases at twenty years.

How am I going to help her? Jake thought, worry growing. Though the idea of losing Mason made him angry and listless, at least he could take care of himself. Emma, not so much, and he'd grown attached to her- more than he'd realized.

Perhaps she just has the dreams but won't change for a long time yet, he thought. It wasn't as if there weren't more things different about them so far.

Bolyr said that with the native Kobolds, only a handful of people ever awoke their bloodlines yearly, and that was across all tribes!

Instead, he had already changed, and the other Earthlings seemed destined for it, which was another reason for him to sigh miserably. Mason and Sandra had insisted that they keep searching the jungle for more Kobolds. They would need a large force to free the Kobolds in the Goblin camp.

But they didn't really mean they. The one who had to do the searching?

Him.

There were good reasons, of course. Mason and Sandra might change at any moment, and someone had to stay with the Kobolds and Emma. With Wilson gone, there were only a few people capable of defending themselves if the Goblins or another threat found them. Besides, they needed people to gather food, build shelters, etc. There was also the thing that he was far faster on his own and could fly away if need be.

All of that didn't change the fact that he was now expected to roam the jungle every day, saving Kobolds.

I thought that after I found Mason, it would be all about 'finding' a place to stay! Not create one ourselves, he thought with a sigh as he wearily placed his head on his front legs and stared at the slowly rising sun.

--

"Get away from me, you stupid overgrown lizard!"

Like always, the grating sound of a Goblin's voice made Jake want to rip him apart. He moved his head closer and contracted his tail more, feeling the Goblin squirm in his grasp.

"Where are you and your ugly friends keeping the Kobolds?" he snarled.

"You can hug me all you want, but I ain't telling!"

The tips of Jake's teeth brushed along the ears of the Goblin. It reeked, but he needed the information, even if that meant getting this close to the disgusting green skin.

"I will rip off your ears, one at a time, and make you eat them! But, tell me where the Kobolds are, and you get a quick death!"

"Is that the best you can do? Bah! I thought Dragons were supposed to be big and scary! You're hardly more than a scaled horse!"

I- he, that- Jake roared at the sky, unable to even get his words out.

This Goblin was infuriating! How was he not scared? The previous ones had instantly told him what he wanted to know, but this one? He seemed unafraid of everything!

With a low growl, he dropped the Goblin on the leaf-covered ground and jumped on top. Making sure not to kill him instantly, he grabbed the squirming green figure with the razor-sharp claws on his legs.

"You like big and scary? Fine!"

Jake spread his wings, beating them so hard that he shot up and through the canopy. He had gotten used to flying up through branches and trees and managed to dodge most of the sharp-tipped ones.

As he flew, he was replaying what had happened. This Goblin he had caught a few minutes ago was different from the others. Something wasn't as it seemed.

Could it be?

Less than ten minutes later, he saw the swamp area in front of him. The Goblin that had been laughing and cursing him the whole trip became silent. The crocodiles swimming around began looking up, staring at Jake with their jaws wide as if expecting a treat.

"Last chance!" Jake roared over the wind, flapping above the middle of the swamp. He kept an eye out for the enormous one, ready to drop the Goblin and flee.

"I can't! Peltmans will find out and feed me to his horrible insect pets," the Goblin howled, finally sounding afraid instead of with a spine.

Peltmans? Why did that name sound so familiar? Shrugging it off, Jake growled so low his wings vibrated. "And I will feed you to the crocodiles right now if you don't tell me!"

"Bring me to the other side of the island! If you do, I will tell you!"

Jake frowned, thinking for a second before releasing a claw, causing the group of crocodiles circling below them to go into a frenzy.

"Come on! You will never find them without me!" the Goblin screeched, barely any fear on his face.

This is not normal Goblin behavior! Jake grabbed the Goblin again and looked down at his face. "Who or what are you!"

As he stared at the Goblin, he saw a small tremor course through the green face. For a split second, he thought he saw gray skin and black eyes staring at him with pure hate. Without a second thought, he released his claws, and the Goblin silently dropped, its eyes locked with his widening in shock. A fraction before he hit the water, he screamed in a fury, glaring at Jake. Then he was gone. The crocodiles surged down after him, and a bloody, bubbly mess ensued.

What the hell is going on? What was that? Uncertain, Jake gazed at the pink water. Had that been a Fiend? Could they change shape somehow? After one more turn to make sure the fiend hadn't somehow survived, he flew back to the spot where he had captured the Goblin. A longer inspection revealed nothing of interest or were the Goblins and their captured Kobolds had gone. With a reluctant weariness, he continued searching for captured Kobolds.

Half a day later, the sun sinking below the horizon, he finally found the small convoy of Goblins trekking through the jungle. There were twenty of the vile green monsters, more than he had seen before, and they had a group of tied-up Kobolds walking in a line between them.

That's almost forty Kobolds! he thought in utter surprise. How did so few Goblins find and capture that many Kobolds?

He trailed them, keeping an eye open for any stragglers he could pick up. To his surprise, they all remained close together, eyes constantly open for anything.

When the shadows in the jungle began to deepen, he knew the Goblins would probably stop for the night soon. That would give him the perfect opportunity to free the Kobolds. Twenty Goblins would be no problem because they couldn't see him in the dark. He did worry about bringing such a large group of Kobolds back through the jungle but heading back for help was out of the question. They would reach the Goblin camp before he could make it back.

He kept following the Goblins until they made camp in a thicket between two large trees. Jake climbed into one of the nearby trees and made his way till he was above the Goblins. As he moved along the dark gray bark, he noticed tiny ants crawling around.

Normal insects? Weird... They were the first he had seen in this world, and he wondered why he hadn't seen any yet. Then he focused back on the task at hand.

Below him, the Goblins tied the Kobolds together with long vines before creating a campfire. They sat around it, laughing and yelling at each other while munching on strips of dried meat and fruit.

Jake scowled. It was almost as if they were having a picnic in the park instead of being trapped in a strange world in different bodies in the middle of a deadly jungle. Didn't they know their loud noise would attract predators?

Idiots, Jake thought with a wide, toothy grin.

Creeping down, he waited silently, occasionally examining the Kobolds. From what he could see, they were all malnourished, wounded, and tired. None of them seemed ready to fight, which might be why the relatively small group of Goblins had managed to capture them. It also meant he would have to do this himself.

Hours later, the Goblins finally stopped their loud party, one after the other falling asleep next to the campfire.

Why didn't anything come to attack them yet? Jake wondered as he snuck forward.

He barely made any noise and was about to pounce on one of the Goblins when he stopped. Wasn't it really quiet? He didn't hear any of the night cries he had become familiar with... Before, he had accounted it to the Goblin party overwhelming the sounds, but now?

A bad feeling grew inside as he looked around, and he backed up, sneaking back into the tree. He could wait a little longer. The Goblins had only just fallen asleep. Roughly thirty minutes later, everything was the same, and he shrugged. He must be imagining things. Perhaps this was just a quiet part of the jungle?

Before Jake could move, a shadow soundlessly stepped out of the thicket next to the Goblin camp.

Insectoids... Jake followed the creepy two-legged bug as it quietly moved amongst the sleeping Goblins. It didn't make any move to attack them. When it came closer to the Kobold captives, Jake saw that a few of those were still awake and staring at the Insectoids without blinking, fear etched on their faces.

"There you are!"

A soft voice caused Jake to swirl around, staring right into the mandibled face of a second Insectoid sitting on a branch nearby. Soft, clicking noises of things climbing into the tree came from below and all around.

A shout came from the Goblin camp, and one of the Insectoids kicked a Goblin awake while pointing at his tree.

Jake resisted his instant urge to attack the Insectoids and backed up climbing further into the tree. The Insectoid followed him, and he could hear more of them behind him.

"Where are you going, little Dragon? We just want to have a chat!" A mocking, clicking voice came from multiple spots around him, and Jake felt his blood begin to boil. It took all his efforts not to rush back down and fight them.

"Come now! Don't you want to save your friends? If you leave now, we will eat them!"

Jake didn't bother to reply. As if him going back would save the Kobolds? He saw a large branch protruding out of the jungle roof and scrambled towards it, his claws carving into the wood. The insectoids couldn't keep up, and when he leaped into the air, soaring away, he only heard a many-voiced scream from inside the tree.

"We will kill all Kobolds and then you and feast on your succulent flesh!"

Jake cursed as he flew away. Those vile things were in league with the Goblins? Now, what was he supposed to do?

--

A group of Goblins, Kobolds, and Insectoids trudged along the muddy past next to the crystal clear river that flowed through the jungle.

Jake ducked his head back into the river, hoping he had been fast enough. One of the Insectoids kept looking over, and he wondered if it knew he was there or was just being careful. It was one of five Insectoids that trailed the Goblins, keeping an eye on their surroundings.

The line of Kobolds was walking two by two, most of their heads hanging down as they stared sluggishly at the ground.

Only three without blue scales. Jake frowned, looking at the finger-sized sliver of green weed in his taloned hand. He had searched for it but only found a single tiny plant. It would have to do, barely enough for one, really, but what other choice did he have? He glanced around, praying to see something useful.

There was barely anything moving around him. When he had first slid into the water, the startled Hydracii had taken one look at him and had fled, as had any fish larger than his arm. Now all that was left were schools of silvery fish and a giant eel hiding below a sunken tree trunk. Barely any plants, and none of the underwater breathing weed.

Fine, let's try this out then, he thought as he closed his eyes.

As he hovered in the river, he concentrated on the blue energy floating around. He didn't know what he was doing, but vague ideas and concepts had started cropping up over the last few weeks. They hadn't become clear enough to understand before, but after eating his fill a few days ago, two of them had begun crystallizing. He'd have preferred testing either without any pressure, but he needed any edge he could get.

One of these better be useful, he thought as the muscle in his chest suddenly contracted slightly. A pulse of energy moved through his body and seemed to connect to the energy motes in the water.

He slowly became aware of his surroundings, as if a rough sketch of the river's banks and bottom had formed in his mind.

Radar? he tried to make sense of what he saw: tiny fish hiding between the plants and the eel, taking peeks from his hiding place, probably terrified.

Jake attempted to sharpen the image, but all that happened was that his range extended by a dozen feet.

As he focused more, knowledge began appearing in his mind, almost like a forgotten memory, and he instinctively drew the particles towards him. Memories that he inherited from the primal consciousness made him gather the particles into the mana-muscle. He felt the particles flood inside, and suddenly something ignited something deep inside him.

As if an engine began roaring, the muscle began rapidly contracting, and he immediately recognized the sensation. This had been what it felt like whenever he went out of control back in his Kobold body!

There was a large difference, though.

He wasn't at all out of control. No, this time he felt a connection to the water, one so strong that he could almost command it to do as he wanted, move as he wanted—attack whom he wanted!

Ahhhh, so that's how it works, Jake thought as the second ability became clear to him.

--

As the Goblins walked along the muddy banks, the water movement in the river began slowing, then changing direction. It started rotating, and within seconds a whirlpool was changing the roaring sound the river had been making.

From the riverside, Goblins and Kobolds looked in panic at what was happening. Behind them, the Insectoids were backing up toward the jungle.

With a jarring suddenness, a cylinder formed in the whirlpool and began growing in height. One meter, two meters, four meters, eight meters. It towered above the land, and with a scream, the Goblins turned and ran.

The Insectoids were long gone, and the Kobolds, tied to each other, started yelling and screaming, fumbling to get free. One of them, a thick, incredibly dark blue-scaled one, had some energy left, got up, and shouted for the others to run to the forest. It was too late. With the sound of a collapsing building, the water column tilted, then slammed down onto the muddy ground next to the river and engulfed the group of Kobolds.

Instead of rushing forward and into the jungle, the water stayed where it was, like a tendril of water, lying on its side. Then as if it had done its work, it receded, drawing the Kobolds into the river. A moment later, the river was calm again, but there was no sign of the Kobolds. Only a muffled roar emanated from the river, which had returned to its normal speedy flow.

--

Jake slowly swam forward, three Kobolds hanging on his tail while a large group curiously swam around him. Besides the three chewing on the weed, the others seemed energetic. After their initial fear of Jake wore off, they were primarily curious. He could understand that: if you got swept away to find yourself eye to eye with a dragon that starts roaring at you, it might be somewhat disturbing. He didn't understand why they had been only afraid for a minute or two.

Perhaps it's some sort of natural instinct? he wondered.

Jake felt dead tired as he forced his weary body to continue to swim upstream, back along the direction the Goblins had come from and away from the coast that should be somewhere behind them.

Besides feeling drained, his stomach kept rumbling like a truck engine every odd minute.

At least none of them was a Fiend, he thought as the face of the Goblin-shaped Fiend appeared in his mind's eye.

"So, where are you taking us again?" one of the Kobolds asked.

She was swimming next to him, staring at him with large, curious eyes. She spoke with a slight accent that he couldn't place but sounded exotic. Perhaps Asian?

As he examined her, Jake realized she looked an awful lot like he had before turning into a Dragon. Dark-blue and silver-colored scales, with long thick strains of blue hair that swirled around her head as she swam forward.

I wonder if she is going to change into the same type of Dragon? he wondered.

"To a safe place, with more Kobolds. But it's going to be a long swim and after that a long walk. Why don't you tell me a bit about yourself?"

She laughed ruefully in response, but with a flicker in her eyes that showed a great resilience after everything that had happened to her.

"I was about to ask you the same thing, I mean. Jake, you're a Dragon! How did you do that? I didn't see that option anywhere!"

Jake grinned back and saw her flinch just as he remembered he had more teeth like this.

"But you've already found the way. You just haven't released it yet," he said. "

Around them, the other Kobolds were swimming closer, most with curious looks on their faces. Jake looked around, examining them all quickly. There were more blue scales than anything else, and he wondered.

"Did any of you enter the water after arriving here?"

Most of the Kobolds shook their heads or made non-comical sounds of denial, but the one with the exotic accent frowned, rubbing the side of her cheek as if thinking.

"After I woke up here, I found some others pretty soon, and one of them started bossing us around. He told us not to go into the water because it would be dangerous!"

Wake up here? Jake furrowed his thick, scaly brows. "You woke up here? You didn't walk or run into this world? Could you tell me who you are and how you got here?"

She hesitated for a second, then smiled. "My name is Elizabeth, but everyone just calls me Lizz. Well... my friends used to." her smile wilted, but she continued. "I was on a train when the whole world turned to shit. After the plane crashed, like most things with engines did, I survived and managed to get out with my friend..." She fell silent for a second, a distinct look in her eyes, but then she shook her head.

Jake saw the pain of loss in her eyes, but she just continued.

"We hid inside an old church and saw hordes of those disgusting Goblins roam around the streets. They were capturing anyone who didn't do as those retards on the news said- were none too gentle about it either! My friend was also a Kobold, but with wonky colors. Not like most of us here, but with purple and black scales!"

So, like Melissa? Jake thought, but he didn't interrupt her.

While Lizz talked, the other Kobolds silently swam around her and Jake, looking at her and listening. Some were nodding as she spoke, but others seemed conflicted.

"-and when they were about to grab us, we all fell unconscious again. After I woke up, Ellie and the church were gone. Instead, I was in the middle of some jungle together with a few other Kobolds I had never seen before."

"That's weird, I tell ya!" One of the completely blue Kobolds swam closer to her, frowning. He was one of the few completely bald Kobolds, his head covered in large scales with light blue edges. It almost looked like a tattoo covered his head.

Jake turned to him, agreeing but curious if the other had the same reason for it. "What do you mean?"

"Well, see, me and some others? We were being chased by some monsters. Dogs, they must've been before all this... But anyway, we were running from them towards one of those weird areas you just mentioned. Those that just popped up out of bloody nowhere and replaced my favorite pub, The Slimy Toad!"

The Kobold was speaking in another unfamiliar accent, and Jake was wondering where he came from when he heard the pub's name. With a suddenness that surprised even him, he turned to the Kobold, which fell quiet.

"You're from Liongates city?"

"Yeah, Mate! Wait... you too? I don't believe it! You were in the same shit hole when this all bloody started?"

Jake laughed, the memories of his previous life surging up, and for the first time since turning into a Dragon, he felt a semblance of his old self returned. It didn't last for more than a few seconds, but when it vanished again, he suddenly realized that he really missed his parents.

How come I didn't think about them at all? he thought. Was it because of the change to a Dragon, or had it begun before? His mind in a slight turmoil, he swam forward, trying to regain his calm.

The group of Kobolds was silent, swimming next to him, apparently sensing his mood.

After a few minutes of taking deep breaths of water, Jake grinned at the Kobold and nodded. "How about you explain what you meant when you said it was weird."

"Sure thing, matey! Well, we were fleeing and all that when we ran into this enormous jungle. It had appeared all across the central part of town. As soon as we enter that place? Boom! Everything changes! One of us, he gets the jitters and turns around right away. But there is now only jungle all around us! We walked through that bloody place for what had to be months, eating roots and insects the size of meh legs! Most of the others didn't make it. There's monsters in those there jungles! Things you wouldn't believe!" the man snorted as he glared up at the sky, probably picturing the jungle.

"I believe you. That is how I got here too. But we found a river and a group of soldiers after a few days. And... other Kobolds."

After the first two, the other Kobolds, safe for those he was dragging and gnawing the tiny slivers or air root, began telling the tales of how they got here. It was a welcome distraction for them all, and slowly Jake noticed a feeling of camaraderie spread throughout the group.

As if they hadn't just been saved from potentially the most horrible thing imaginable, the Kobolds began laughing and talking with each other. Jake took a quick look at those that were mostly green and noticed confused and weary glances.

It has to be the infusion of energy from the water, he thought.

After only a few hours after he had saved them, the Kobolds all seemed completely different than before, acting more familiar with each other than he knew any human would be able to in the same situation. He wasn't sure if it was also the water or the fact that they were all very alike. Some innate kinship?

Close to where he wanted to leave the water for the last trek through the jungle, there was a strangled gasp from behind, and he snapped his head around. One of the three Kobolds on his tail was clutching his chest, his eyes wide.

"We are going up now before they drown! Follow me!"