Paradise With Playful Pals - The Depthstriders: Part 1

Paradise With Playful Pals
The Depthstriders: Part 1

(Intro, feel free to skip till the --- part)

“Are we lost again?”

“What makes you throw such an undeserved heavy accusation at me?”

   Not receiving an answer, Eli turned to look towards unamused Vericia, who was demonstratively pointing at a hastily scribbled marking on the tunnel wall that they had previously left there.

“Oh, I see.”

   Vericia nodded lively when her brother accepted the fact that they had been going in circles. The Beneath sure was a fascinating place to explore, but if one happened to know the layout of this vast network about as much those two did then, well, no wonder some mistakes were too good to repeat only once.

I’ve had it, my turn. We go there.”

   Vericia decided to take the lead as she was marching into another tunnel crossing their path. They had a great time with the Druids after becoming their heroes, but the meals they gulped down started to disappear into the depths of their bellies, especially in Vericia’s case. She craved meat, a good protein to keep her going as the plant stuff couldn’t fuel her for long. Perhaps this was the main reason she was fed up with wandering aimlessly in these corridors and her brother’s clear incompetence wasn’t making her laugh.

   The tunnel Vericia picked slowly descended. Both Reoseans felt the air becoming physically heavier as the amount of moisture in it skyrocketed. Were they heading to a flooded dead end? There was only one way to find out.

   They both could smell another creature ahead of them, filling their nostrils with the foul stench of a wet dog. Before Vericia could make a sassy comment about it, the bend they took revealed another Vayron sitting next to a calm stream, soaking wet and panting. The soggy Runner abruptly turned around to see what was the noise it heard just to see two Pullers standing in the entrance, both having their brows raised. The Runner was relieved to see the faces of familiar species, so it smiled at them.

“Oh, glad to see fellow Vayrons around here. Do you two happen to know where I’ve ended up?”

   Having exchanged confused glances, Vericia summoned the best poker face in the whole Reos before responding.

“My expertise would suggest you’re underground, next to a lovely body of water.”

   Eli kicked Vericia in the ribs as she didn’t have to be such a dork with someone they just met, after which he stepped forward, leaving his sister gently rubbing the impact site on her side.

“I apologize for my sister’s uncivilized behavior. I am Eli, this savage lady is Vericia and I am sad to inform you that we happen to share the same fate as you.”

   The Runner wiped some water off his snout before he stood up, dripping profusely from everywhere.

“I’m Wardac, nice to meet you. I guess we’ll have to keep on trying our luck then.”

“By the way, why were you having a swim? It’s not that hot down here.”

   Ah, good old Vericia being straightforward and blunt as usual. Fortunately, Wardac seemed to be a chill guy so he chuckled before explaining the condition of his coat.

“Right, so, I ran into a dead end but saw some light coming from the pool’s corner in said cave. Having no other way to go, I hopped in and what do you know, ended up here.”

“You should’ve turned left, not right.”

   A new jaunty voice coming from the stream behind Wardac gave everyone a good startle before they noticed a freshly-appeared scaled Haedian, who was making calm swimming motions in order to stay still in the gentle flow while having head popped out from the water, bright green glistening eyes examining the strange creatures before him. Seeing their reactions, he giggled playfully.

---

“Hi, I’m Ornaax! Do you wanna play?”

   All three topsiders stared at the Haedian with pretty dumb faces. Was this guy for real or was it some elaborate trap to lure simple-minded prey to voluntarily walk between his jaws, saving him the trouble of chasing it? Seeing the trio hesitate, Ornaax tossed a somersault with no effort, splashing the crystal clear water up in the air before he leaned his forearms on the shore.

“Oh come on, I don’t bite. I just thought maybe you want to see the Depthstriders’ beautiful home and I’d love to have a race with some new friends.”

   Eli and Vericia recalled Auris mentioning something about Depthstriders, so they became more relaxed in the presence of this quirky guy. Wardac slowly turned around, not taking his eyes off Ornaax.

“Were you… following me?”

“Uhmm, sort of, I just noticed you pass by so I decided to catch up to check if you needed directions.”

   The scaled Hae definitely didn’t let himself be bothered by the squeezing awkwardness swirling around the chamber. Ornaax mentioning directions made Vericia perk up. In her opinion, anything was better than trying to orient in this damn maze like chickens who had eaten their map and tried to find another one to have it for dessert.

“So… you’re offering directions to your home, correct?”

   Ornaax nodded energetically towards Vericia as he was glad to see the guests started to figure things out. It was perfectly fine if they happened to be slow up in the attic, he only hoped they’d join him in fun games.

“And let me guess - this involves passing through dark underwater tunnels?”

   Eli inquired with a slight tint of resistance in his voice. It was no surprise that this method of traveling seemed unpleasant and possibly dangerous to the Vayrons who preferred solid ground beneath their paws and breathable air around them.

“The tunnels are lit up by many crystals and there’s plenty of air pockets. You’ll be fine, I’ll show you!”

   Ornaax pushed himself off the river’s edge to make room as an invitation to others to just jump in already. Wardac was the first to take hesitant steps towards the water. He was already soaked and truth to be told, he started to feel cold by just sitting still in this damp chilly cave. He smoothly slipped back in and felt the pleasant warm wet hug around him, immediately alleviating his goosebumps. Seeing Wardac get in made the siblings approach the shore, where they reluctantly pawed at the water to test its temperature. It wasn’t as pleasant as a nice hot bath but not like the lake water during early spring either, so eventually, they managed to ease themselves in and adjust to the new sensation intruding in their fur.

“Great! Let’s go!”

   Ornaax swiftly turned around, made a happy jump out of the water like an overachieving circus dolphin before he dived deeper to enter one of the tunnels leading to the Depthstrider’s territory. Wardac started to paddle to follow him while Vericia and Eli exchanged mildly concerned glances with each other before pushing their paws off the rocky bottom and following the others to unknown waters.

   As Ornaax promised, the flooded tunnel had plenty of air pockets where the Vayrons could refill their lungs and the pathways were decently wide and well-lit, thanks to which the sense of claustrophobia left Eli’s mind, leaving only the desire not to drown lingering around somewhere. Vericia appreciated how Ornaax made sure they all stayed close behind to him and let them breathe as long as they wanted when the opportunity presented itself. Wardac felt something similar as he, too, could see how the Haedian fought his impatience to reach quickly to the heart of the Depthstriders territory with his new pals. This journey went on for quite a while, but as soon as the cavern became visible around the corner, the Vayrons were blinded by the light coming from there. As their eyes adjusted to the level of light they probably experienced on the surface before descending in these dark caves, they could see why Ornaax was itching to get here.

   This place was simply breathtaking. In Vericia’s mind, this is exactly something she’d imagine when someone told her to combine the prettiest visual she had of Vitalus with the prettiest visual she had of a tropical paradise beach and make it a hundred times prettier with a generous sprinkle of magic added to it. Eli and Wardac lacked such poetry at the moment as they let their eyes rest on the colorful corals growing right above the waterline on the natural arched stone bridges and platforms of various sizes, shapes and heights. Vast majority of the aquatic flora and fauna was underwater, but thanks to the crystal clear water and plenty of light everywhere they could still see it - kelp gently swaying as the fish and Haedians swam by, soft green grass layering the visual bottom of the mazed pool while here and there was still white sand batches visible through all the vividly chromatic aquatic life covering almost everything. In addition to that, the Haedians living here seemed a lot more colorful compared to the ones they met before, but they didn’t have gills or additional fins, which disappointed Wardac slightly as he hoped to see another subspecies of Haedians here. Despite that, Ornaax became even more cheerful when he saw how the topsiders were stunned by the sight before them.

“Welcome to my home, friends! There’s so much I want to show you.”

   He once again leapt out of the water, further from the three tired Vayrons as an indication to keep following him before he elegantly splashed back in, catching the attention of a few more Depthstriders resting on the rocks. They came to greet Ornaax, after which they curiously followed the topsiders with their eyes and wide smiles or swam behind and around them, showing off how well they had adapted to the watery lifestyle. Eli, Vericia and Wardac couldn’t stop devouring the sight around them with their eyes, while Vericia’s mouth started to water when a school of large fish attempted to cross their path but decided against it, swiftly darting around and waiting for their way to clear up.

“Hey, Ornaax?”

   Vericia managed to get the Hae’s attention the moment he lifted his head out of the water to breathe, while the trio of guests had unanimously decided to paddle on doggy-style as their sight wasn’t the best when submerged. Ornaax turned his joyfully sparkling eyes at the female Puller, eyebrows raised to hear what she had to say.

“I don’t want to be rude, but do you happen to have something edible? Like grilled fish? Ohhh I’d love that.”

   Eli’s expression shifted to resemble an unamused llama who was about to go down a waterfall while Wardac softly giggled at his companion’s character. Ornaax took a moment to process Vericia’s request, after which his face beamed up with a ridiculously cheerful grin.

“Ohh, of course we can celebrate your arrival with a feast! Here, I can show you how to catch the biggest and best fish.”

   With that, he dived immediately and Vericia followed closeby, now motivated by the mouthwatering idea of having some fresh meat again. Eli and Wardac decided to let Vericia have her fun as they heaved themselves on one of the flat rocks, shaking the excess water out of their coats before they lied down on the warm rocks, letting their bodies rest from the journey here while several curious Depthstriders approached them for a chat. At the same time, Ornaax and Vericia were fishing for the delicious meal, where Onaax did most of the job as Vericia was far from being as fast and elegant as this friendly and open-minded Depthstrider.