My instinct to raise my tail-blade was a strong one. This even though my potential foe was just a lone human whose sword wouldn't stay still in his hands. But, then again, instinct was something that every species found hard to resist against. Some species depended solely on instinct to keep themselves alive. Though I was loathe to admit it, Andalites were once so ruled by instincts.
Should I attack this human? If I let him live then he could cause problems in the future. If he had survived in this harsh environment so far, there was a chance he would find it an acceptable risk to attack me while I slept.
What would Elfangor do? Would he have sliced the human's head off already? Would he have engaged the human in a short battle? Or would he ease the human's fear?
It would be so easy to assume that Elfangor would attack or force the human to bow to his will. But my Prince wasn't what most Andalites were. He was something far beyond the scope of what most of my cousins considered to be acceptable. Yet he had been able to rise to the rank of Prince even though he didn't always follow the rules. Could I be respected by the human by acting like Elfangor?
In as quick of a motion as the human could manage, he raised his sword up and ran at me. The yell from his mouth must have been to give him bravery. Creatures with mouths did tend to use them for strange uses. The human was not quick enough to hit me, not even when I was exhausted.
While he had had to gather courage to make an attack, I barely took a second to step away from him. I expected the human to lose balance with the strange legs of his, but he managed to stay upright somehow. The expression on his face was hard to read but I assumed it was angry.
"What kind of demon are you?" The human asked. "Why don't you just go and bother someone else? Why can't you leave me alone?"
This human either was less intelligent than his peers or the strain of living in the desert was too much for him. From his words it seemed as if he thought I had been with him for awhile. Had he gone crazy and would be of use to no one?
No. If he could speak, he had to have retained some of himself. That made him much stronger than my cousins would give any species credit for. Even though I trusted Elfangor completely, I was taken away by how right he had been. Hopefully he survived and when I returned home we could talk about the humans.
"Speak!" The human cried out.
If he hadn't been so dehydrated I assumed tears would be coming out of his eyes. Humans tended to cry when they got emotional. Whether they were angry, happy, or sad they cried. Strange thing.
[My name is Warrior Quio-Riril-Liuary.] I began. [I am an Andalite.]
The human whipped his head around. Most likely being confused about a being that could use telepathy instead of mouth sounds. I waited patiently until he calmed down enough to look at me. There was now even more tension in his body than before.
[My people fight the Yeerks whose only goal is to enslave every free creature in the galaxy. In the war against the Yeerks, I found myself fighting over the planet Earth. When it was clear to me that the battle was going to be lost, I decided to flee to report back to the homeworld. But when I attempted to go back home I found myself in this strange place.] I continued. [I do not know what this place is or how I can go back. I didn't travel through a Sario Rip. Even if it was I highly doubt I could get back home to warn my people.]
"You're in the ruined city of Qolahn now." The human replied without any fear in his voice, just exhaustion. "On the continent of Essos."
[Do you have a name for your planet?]
"Why would we? It's the only world there is."
How primitive these humans were. The humans of Earth at least knew that their planet was only one among countless others. Some humans of that planet had even theorized the existence of other lifeforms than the ones they were familiar with. These humans of...Planetos didn't even know there were other worlds than this.
"You must be some kind of demon, Quio." The human said. "There's no other creature like yourself that could exist on the mortal realm."
[I'm no demon.] I replied with a laugh. [But a being that is known by my people, called the Ellimist, may have put me on your world as punishment.]
"All gods are cruel."
[I ran from a battle. No matter the reasons, I was a coward as the honorable thing to do was die with my cousins.]
The human's lips moved but no words came out. Then the human closed his mouth. Had he been unable to speak? Was he ashamed of my cowardice? Or was it some other human expression I was unaware of yet?
"Your god might have abandoned you, but I have need of you." The human finally said. "My name is Sallor Verda."
My initial reaction was to laugh at the human. Why would I deign to help such a primitive species? Why would I want to help someone that wasn't an Andalite?
My next reaction was completely different. While I was superior to him, he knew this land while I was oblivious to it. I doubted I could survive by flying in a random direction. This time I had found an abandoned city and a weak foe. But next time could be different. The first humans that I encountered were warriors, after all.
[What do you need, Sallor?] I asked, my tail-blade twitching.
"I am on my way to Qarth." Sallor replied. "You could protect me until I reached the city. After that, we will part ways."
DECIDE WHAT HAPPENS NEXT BY JOINING HERE WE STAND
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