Aspiring Adventurer - Paiko in the Paperverse: Origins (1) - Prior Being

#72 - Origins

Where is your character from? Where were they born, assembled, built, created, or otherwise begin to exist?

-

[Perpetually beaten.] 

Was there no end to this cycle? 

The same foes. The same fight. The same finish. 

Why didn't it stop? Waiting for the tables to turn? For the underdog to come out on top? 

Huh. That'll be the day. 

- 

[Preparing (for) battle.]

Dark yellow eyes watching the clifftop from behind rocky pillars. Long, pointed ears standing straight up, swiveling around and catching sounds. Purple-tipped black tail swishing back and forth apprehensively, claws gripping the stone, adding to the scores of scars carved there already. 

Watching, but not waiting too long. 

Here, two slabs of rock sheltering darkness, habitat of one. 

There, a plateau lined with stony crags, home of another. 

Sitting out was against the rules, apparently. Attempted only twice; both times sought out and hunted down anyways. In the end, it bought little time for respite and prolonged the following battle. 

To call it a battle was a misnomer. It really was more a game, to the champion, the winner, the predator. Not fun in the least to the hunted, the prey. Like cat-and-mouse. 

Substitute the one cat with two huge feline-type creatures, and the mouse with a comparatively small, comparatively weak, not-quite-dragon-beast, and the stage is all set. 

All set for an indefinite amount of days to come. 

-

[Poorly balanced.]

The first felid was inferior in terms of raw strength and ability, but what it lacked in power, it made up for in stealth and agility. As long as there were any rocks or scaleable surfaces present, the advantage went to the Crawler. 

Even out in the open, its sand-colored coat blended in with the dusty clifftop. This presented a dilemma to the prey - to remain in plain sight was just asking to be targeted, but to take refuge in the shadows always risked an ambush from above or behind. 

The second felid was massive, powerful, and poisonous. It moved slower than the Crawler, though its huge size and force behind each blow more than compensated for speed. When the Crusher came out to play, that meant the end was near. 

That wasn't to say that the hunted drakon had no strengths whatsoever. A compact frame, sharp claws with good traction, large eyes and ears - all traits essential for staying just out of reach, just one step ahead. 

Until it ran out of steps.

Then the Crusher let loose its ultimate move, a noxious cloud that burned the airways with its pungent odor, muddled the mind with its soporific properties. No amount of quick reflexes or defensive agility could stand against that. Inevitably and always, the match ended with the Crusher's toxic fumes. 

This next match would be no different. 

- 

[Probably broken.] 

That's what it felt like. Ribs cracked. Breath gone. Body numb. Free fall. 

And then it all came crashing and splashing down. Cold, wet, flailing, frantic. 

Talons blindly grasping for the shore. It was there. Again through the process of climbing out onto dry, rocky land; sprawled out for five minutes just to breathe and wince and roar frustration to the sky; another ten minutes spent taking inventory of injury. 

The conclusion never changed. Being alive was great, for sure, but by now, it only meant one day more of the same miserable whims of whatever dimensional temporal loop that had taken reality into its snare. 

- 

[Prison break.]

The loop was interrupted. Such a thing hadn't happened since... since all that had started in the first place. 

The drakon shivered and twitched, still wet, still suffering from the consequences of the last round. Curled on one side, sporting long slashes along the flank. Eyes half open, swollen so much on the left to the point of blindness. Barely audible wheezes that rasped through scarred, waterlogged lungs. 

Normally the day would reset, give enough strength and life to the unfortunate victim to pick up and continue. 

It wasn't happening this time. 

Was that something to be grateful for? Had freedom from this prison of a twisted, looping reality finally been granted? 

The snarls of the hunting felids above could no longer be heard. Even the sounds of the waves crashing against the rocky shore had faded away. 

- 

[Powerful bargain.]

"Drakon." 

The pitiful creature stirred, ears perking up and rotating like mini satellite dishes. 

"Drakon," said the voice again. 

This time, a feeble whine of acknowledgement. Why did answers have to be verbal? So much work. 

"Your timeline has been taken up for maintenance." 

Oh. So that was why the loop didn't continue. 

"In light of your particular circumstances, you get options." 

Options? That was a first. There had never been much of a choice before. 

"You can either return to your original timeline, or-" 

Without even hearing the second option, the drakon whispered, "No, not back there. Anything but back there." Voice cracking in desperation, body trembling in recollection. 

"So you can speak," the voice noted with a hint of intrigue. "Good. It's difficult to bargain with a dumb creature." 

"Help me." 

"Are you certain you don't want to think the options through? Once your timeline is straightened out, you would be able to return to a nor-" 

A firm shake of the head, as forceful as the injured drakon could muster in that state. "Take me away. I don't want to go back." 

"Quite insistent. Desperate, probably. In that case, I will grant you that request. However-" 

The drakon was ready for any condition set forth, as long as it did not involve any temporal loops or colossal cat creatures. 

"- I would take custody of you. You would live under my charge." 

The drakon hesitated. Was that really so bad? The voice seemed like a figure of authority. Someone in charge. Perhaps being under the responsibility of another would afford some protection from harm. 

The voice added, "Let me clarify a little more. I am working on a project, and your unique circumstances make you the ideal subject to follow.”

“Will I be safe?”

“Safe?” The voice paused. Was it possible it was caught off guard by the question? “Everything comes with a risk. Safety from what?”

“From… from the big cats. From repeating. Endlessly. A losing battle.”

That was the only thing the drakon needed. Security. And an escape from this existence.

“In that case, yes. We will grant you safety from that.”

The sense of relief was so intense that it overpowered all the physical discomfort the drakon was experiencing.

At last. Freedom from the loop. A chance to move forward, into a new chapter.

-

But this is only the beginning...