Completed The Earth is Alive [Kol]

[Tazi]

Tazi took his hand carefully, placing his knuckles on her bear knee to inspect the laceration. Taking one of the smaller scraps of fabric with her uninjured hand, she dabbed at his palm. The water droplets that he had not shaken off from washing his hands allowed her to find some moisture. Thankfully it was a clean cut. Had it been jagged, it would have been harder to get a seamless healing process. Placing the strip of fabric beneath his knuckles, she wrapped the ends around the injury. Then, she pulled it tight. With the tightness, the wound would remain shut, and the body would be able to fix it on it's own.

"I think that is admirable. She should go see Traya, my mentor if she is serious about it," Tazi offered, wrapping his hand again and pulling the fabric taunt. Already it was spotting with blood from the pressure. Of course, the pressure would also stop the bleeding. When she was on the last little bit of fabric, she tied it off. Rotating his hand gently in her hands, she nodded approvingly. Pretending to raise her head to look at his shoulder, she stole a glance at his face. It was not the stoic one her eyes left when she had begun work. It looked, worried. Standing up, she began to walk back towards the edge of the jungle.

"What are you doing?"

"I have to find something. Wait there." Tazi commanded. With her pants ripped to shreds, she was thankful for the bit of cloth that used to be her pristine undergarments clung pathetically to her hips. She disappeared a few feat into the brush, handling the various plants. The likelihood that she would find the plant she was looking for was not good, but it at least it gave her a moment to collect herself. As she rummaged around, she found the same plant she had seen deeper in the jungle. Even though she was unsure if it was Xelma because it was not flowering, she harvested some of the large leaves. If they turned out to be Xelma, they would prove useful to someone. Just as she was about to head back to Kol, she noticed a small plant with little white flower buds. Falling to her knees, she examined it closely. It was a very small specimen, but she was sure it was Vyfox. She plucked the two clusters the small, pathetic plant had before returning to the beach.

When she was standing in front of him in her gory glory, she held the white flowers out to him. "Chew this up. Don't swallow. Then I want you to press it all into that open wound on your shoulder. Pack it as well as you can. Then I will wrap it up." Once he had taken them, she would shove the leaves into her empty pack for safe keeping.

With that, Tazi walked over to the water. Kneeling, she began to clean herself up, splashing water onto her face and wiping the grip on her hands and arms. Every time cool water hit her face or delved into her hand laceration, fresh pain washed over her. Why did fighting hurt so much?

[Kol]

The young Myrian male watched as she moved to the jungle, her backside, although covered in dirt, still causing his eyes to linger. When she started looking around, he lowered himself to the ground to lay on his back. He took a moment to clear his mind, letting his concentration focus on the aches and pains of his body. He took deep breaths, gentle and slow. His stomach growled and his head was hurting.

One ache.

Two aches.

Three.

Kol didn't know what meditation was, but this was as close as he got. He was absorbing his pain. Feeling it. Experiencing it. It helped him focus on the moment. It was his punishment and reward. The Myrian had almost relaxed completely, his breathing slow and even. Just when he thought he was on the brink of sleep, the woman came wandering back. Her feet were bare so her footsteps were light, but his eyes still shot open. He looked at what she was holding out to him, and after taking them from her, eyed them suspiciously.

He popped them in his mouth and began to chew. And nearly spit them out from habit. The taste... whatever it was, was disgusting. Kol didn't appreciate it and glared at her while she began to clean herself. His nose crinkled and chewed faster, and when he was done promptly spit it into his uninjured palm. He smacked his lips together, trying to get rid of the after taste.

He did as he was told and started to pack to wound. He spit once more on the ground beside him and moved to where Tazi was cleaning up, watching his reflection shatter in the water. "Your turn."

As he waited, Kol reached into the water himself. The water pooled into his palm and he held it for a moment. It was shallow, very little, and most began to drain through his fingers. In a moment of sheer impulse, the male threw it at the healer.

For a moment, his face was completely serious as he stared at Tazi, and then he took a step away from her and smirk slowly crept across his lips. That was for the awful taste of the plant.
---
Myrian

[Tazi]

Tazi splashed the water on her face, occasionally allowing her injured and sensitive nose to soak in palm. The cool water made it sting initially, but as it washed away the blood, it went away. Even the fog her head was in from being bashed multiple times against a tree was beginning to clear. Allowing the water to fall from her hands, she watched as her blood mixed with the clear water. When it grew relatively still again, she became horrified. She had been fighting a handsome Myrian male looking like that? Petch. Frustrated, she dipped her hand back into the water, scrubbing at the jagged cut. Her dagger had done more damage than a clean cut strictly because she had run it through a Yukman's head multiple times.

He had come closer while she was deep in thought. Silently she reprimanded herself for that. Tazi desperately needed to get control of her rampant mind if she ever wanted to be able to maintain her life. At this rate, even a small, innocent herbivore could kill her by sneaking up on her. Tilting her head slightly, she wondered what he meant by 'Her turn.' He was not even near done. She still had to wrap up that shoulder of h-

Bewilderment crossed her face as the water dripped down her face, dribbling in a translucent pink color onto the remainder of her shirt. Blinking at him, she watched his face turn from stone to a playful one. If she didn't know any better, which she didn't, she may have thought this was abnormal for him. Standing up, she stepped into her personal space, placing her hands on his chest. With a deep breath, she smiled coyly back at him. "My turn for what exactly?"

As soon as she had his attention, she would shove as hard as she could, hoping to force him backwards into the water. Maybe, just maybe, she would be enough of a distraction for him.

[Kol]

They had fought along side one another. She had begun to treat his wounds and he had aligned her nose. If anything, one could say the two could perhaps get along well enough to be on the way to friendship. After all, Kol saw her mostly naked. Even now she scampered around in her underwear. Were they not growing closer by the second?

Kol didn't have many friends. Many of the men thought him arrogant, and many of the woman thought him weak, or both. So, everything he was doing, he was practically learning. Any of his social interaction tended to be from his family who understood him so well he didn't even have to speak for them to know his thoughts. The splashing of the water... that would have been a game his sisters would have started. His younger siblings, and he would have denied it at first. And yet now, with this grown woman, Tazi, he was being the childish one.

When she placed her hands on his chest, a look of confusion crossed his face. What was she doing? Her hands were cool from the water, and then warm. He stared down at her, tensing. He realized how little he had known her. Was she like this often? Her voice had changed. There was something there. Something... sensual? No. That couldn't be it. Was she hurt? Maybe her injuries were making her behave oddly.

He didn't reply to her question immediately. He didn't know what to say. To finish bandaging my shoulder. The answer seemed obvious. Too obvious. What did she wish him to say?

Kol almost said something in response. Almost. Instead he decided to see what she would do... but not before striking downward and splashing a huge wave of water on both of them.

---
Myrian

[Tazi]

As soon as he hit the water, she regretted pushing him in. His mass had forced the water up at her as well, dousing her. Tousled hair now shimmered with sparkling droplets as they clung to random strands. Her face, having been cleaned before, also maintained a few of these droplets. It was his shirt that seemed to have took the majority of the wave, clinging to her body in haphazard wrinkles. Had it been tighter fitting, like her shirt that had been on the beach, it probably would have looked see through. This changed places, giving only glimpses of the skin beneath as she moved.

"Alright mouse," Tazi started, a smile playing on her lips. He was as quiet as a mouse, and until he started speaking more, that is what she decided to call him. Mouse. He was a rather big mouse, but still, it seemed fitting. "Let's go wrap up that shoulder."

Of course, she waited for him to move back towards the shore. Turning her back on him now seemed unwise with all this splashing going on.

OOCSorry it is short.

[Kol]

Kol fell pretty hard into the basin, water washing over him and soaking his dirty pants. He gave out a soft 'oof', grunting when he sat up. Tazi was staring down at him and he inwardly cursed at himself for letting down his guard. He gave her a glare and smirk.

He watched her from the water, waiting. When he saw that she wasn't going to turn her back, he gave a brief smile. Smart woman. The moment she would have looked away, he planned to pull her in with him. Instead, he pushed his wet hair out of his face and made his way onto the shore. Beads of water ran down his torso and shoulders, his pants clinging to his legs. He stepped out of the water and raised an eyebrow when she called him mouse.

He scoffed. No. "Mouse? He shook his head, "No." A confident statement against her own nickname for him. Kol turned his head to look at his shoulder. The wound was still packed nicely, whatever plant he had chewed up sticking firmly. As he moved forward, he noticed how his shirt clung to her body, giving him glimpses of what he had seen earlier that day.

"Why were you naked?"

The question came with no tact as he stood there, waiting for her to work with his wound. He felt water dripping from his hair and a droplet rolled down the side of his face. Wasn't it an innocent inquiry?
---
Myrian

[Tazi]

Tazi waited for him to pass her before casually following him up the beach. He seemed to dislike his new nickname. Good. She thought to herself. The more he disliked it, the more she would come to love it. While they walked back the short distance to the pack and linens, she looked at the tattoo a little closer. Her own tattoos, one of twin snakes on the left shoulder and a dagger on her right, were still covered in dirt. His was a little more visible due to its size. This time she noticed the droplets of blood. It was a finite number, and absently she wondered if they meant something.

As she stepped to his side to pick up one of the strips of cloth, she was relieved to see the wound was still packed. Had she not been careless, she probably would not have pushed him into the water. There had been so little Vyfox to gather in the beginning. The likelihood she would have found more was not good. Taking one of the longer strips, she stood beside him. Before she could start the same pattern she had done with his hand on his shoulder, he asked such an odd question. "Have you not seen a naked Myrian woman before? You really should get out more..." She paused, hissing the next word in a playful tone. "...Mouse. Besides, most of the women I have seen walk around half-naked. I am actually considered abnormal."

Tazi had always been abnormal. She preferred peace and healing over war and dead. Fighting had always been strange to her and pain was not something she relished like many others. "In answer to your question, I was relaxing. Enjoying the cool waters."

[Kol]

Kol knew what the other woman did. He did not say he had not seen them, or that he was surprised by her particular attire. Well, he had been, but that was because he believed he was alone in the jungle. He didn't expect to turn and find a woman "relaxing."

"Hm." It was dangerous. Foolish, in fact. So many creatures lurked in the water, to be so far away from your weapon and as vulnerable as she was. Alone. His expression was disapproving and he shook his head. "I get out enough." His last words were grumbled. Kol had never been the ladies man, but he had seen other naked females. It was Myrians, for goodness sake.

If Kol's hair had been tied back or shorter, Tazi may have noticed the tips of his ears getting red. Kol looked away, a straight expression on his face. He changed the topic, bringing up his nickname again,"Mice are prey. I am not."

The words had barely left his mouth when Kol's eyes stopped on something peaking out from the water. It was down the shore a ways, a pair of yellow eyes watching him and Tazi. Kol distractedly swatted Tazi away from his wound, taking a challenging step forward. The head lifted further out of the water, revealing a man's face. He was smiling, the expression of a trickster. His hair was black and hung in strings over pale shoulders. He winked.

And then he darted back under the water and as he dove, the lower half of a snake revealed itself before disappearing as well. Dhani. Kol's mouth pressed into a thin line, his eyes darkening. He could tolerate half breeds, but a purebred of the snake race was not something he favored.

The swaying of water and the occasional head poking forward proved that their audience was heading the other way. Kol didn't move his eyes off the figure till it was no longer in sight. Then he cursed under his breath and shook his head.

Dangerous creatures in the water. Dangerous people.

---
Myrian

[Tazi]

Tazi smiled inwardly as he tried to defend himself as being a socialite. Getting out was one thing, talking to others was another story. She could imagine him getting out, patrolling the forest, fighting in the arena. Talking to women and handling them in ways he was poorly doing at the moment was hard for her to believe he could do. She suspected the women he had seen naked were scarred, deadly, and always on guard. To see a woman lounging in the basin was a little more foreign than she would like to have admitted.

"Mice are prey. I am not."

So he thought. Tazi opened her mouth to retort with something funny, but had already lost his attention. She barely got the bandage tied when he swatted at her. Pulling her fingers away, she looked around his form to see what he was staring at. She saw the ripples in the water. Only when she saw it resurface at a farther distance did a shivering feeling crawl up her spine. Dhani. They were deadly creatures, or so she had been told. She had never met one in person, not even a half breed. Traya had already mentioned their deadly toxins and what it could do to the bodies of Myrians that were too slow. Unknowingly, she stepped closer to Kol, watching the creature dive and resurface away from them.

"Maybe we should head back. The last thing I can handle right now would be one of those snakes." Tazi hissed before recognizing how close she was. Taking a step back, she turned around and busied herself shoving the extra strips of linens into her bag with the unidentified leaves. Part of her did not want to go back. Part of her wanted to get to know him more. Then again, why did she want to stay? She barely knew him. Her mind was being uncooperative at the moment, running between sanity and crazy on horses called hormones.

[Kol]

Her words snapped him from his annoyance, but he found it difficult to relax. He was like a watch dog, poised to attack and unwilling to let down his guard just yet. He scanned the water for anymore of them and finally met her eye after she hurried to collect the scraps of cloth. Was she scared?

Her urgency to go back made sense. After the battering they endured today, he wouldn't be ready to fight much more. And the look that the snake had given them made Kol uneasy. Something didn't feel right. "Taloba." He nodded in confirmation but didn't move from his spot, "Are you done?"

He lifted his bruised fingers to touch her on the shoulder. He took all her movement as being upset and this was about as comforting as he got. He pulled his hand away awkwardly, and then finally took a few steps towards the Jungle. His mind wandered to the Myrian city, what his family would say at his physical state. Then to Tazi and the lunch he never received. His stomach growled angrily in remembrance.

He made a mental note to inquire about the monsters they had faced already, and he double checked to make sure he had all his belongings. He was ready to go. He looked at his new acquaintance.

To the girl with the wild hair and bloodied to nose. To her lack of pants and soaking top. To the healer who helped him survive. To a friend. Kol blinked and turned around, crossing his arms. Had he been looking at his surroundings and not at Tazi, maybe he would have noticed the fat boar that was quietly drinking at the basin's edge. It finished swallowing and waddled back into the bushes.

What other opportunities was he missing?
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Myrian