Tisis

Dawn of a new day (N)

Sirus is quite insistent about me lying down and I'm too exhausted to fight with him right now, though I don't think that I'll be able to sleep.

Not with these nightmares just waiting to haunt me.

He hums a strangely familiar tune which mixes with the crackling of the fire as I lie down and before I know it, the fatigue of the past day catches up to me and I go out like a light.

The next thing I know is the chirping of birds and the feeling of cold.

I bat my eyes open to see the smoking remains of our fire.
Sirus is resting against one of the walls, breathing regularly, but a makeshift spear in hand anyway.

He must have made it while I was sleeping.
But still, for him to fall asleep on guard is...

"Morning, Nym," he suddenly says without even opening his eyes.
I blink a few times and ask, "You...are awake?"
"Just a little trick to get through the day after certain someones pulled 'retaliation raids' on us for three nights straight," he replies while stretching.

Eventually he gets up and shakes his limbs, apparently in order to wake them up properly.
Now that I think about it, I did see some strange behavior like that after ordering shakedowns to punish them for acting up...I had assumed that it was the sleep deprivation, however it seems they actually found a viable strategy to deal with it.

In fact it reminds me a little of something I read on the records about their past. What was it called...ah yes, 'meditation'. Some humans were able to put themselves into a sleep-like state while actually being wide awake and fully functional.
I guess this is an evolution of that technique.

Sirus pops his joints and says, "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm thirsty. And...I'd rather not go alone after that...incident yesterday."

I nod and take the gun, however he points me to yet another crudely made spear and says, "No offense, but I suggest you take that thing too."
"You think a makeshift spear is better than a high-tech gun?"
"No, I think it's a good idea to have a backup weapon, just in case. A lesson I learned from your people, actually."

Hmm, he's right about that. Protocol on board the ship demanded, that our guards only act in pairs. Furthermore they were required to carry at least one backup weapon in case of a malfunction or, even worse, theft.

I pick up the spear, the roughly carved wood feeling strangely abrasive to my skin and after a moment I say, "Alright, let's be off."

Sirus nods and together we leave our little hideout.
I don't know about him, but an uneasy feeling settles in my stomach as we step out into the early morning sun.

A breeze passes by, carrying a thousand unfamiliar smells and the singing of the what I at least assume to be birds sounds raspy and threatening.

It feels as if a million eyes are watching me, waiting for me to let my guard down so they can assault and end me.

I look over to Sirus who briskly walks forward, deeper into the forest.
How is that guy not afraid? Those...monster rabbits almost tore him apart just yesterday, how can he be so very carefree?

No, no, no, I must not make assumptions about how he feels.
For all I know he could well be just as afraid as I am but puts up a brave front for my sake. I think human men do that by instinct, especially if females are nearby.

I shake my head again to banish the implications of the thought.
I cannot afford these thoughts right now.

I exhale audibly and look at my hands.
Crud...my body already began retracting my water reserves to its core. That's why the wood felt so strange to the touch, I've already begun to wither...we need to find water soon, otherwise I'll completely dry out.

I look up to the sunny blue sky and curse myself for not catching more of the rain that had come down the other day.

"Hey, Nym, you okay?" Sirus suddenly asks, snapping me from my thoughts.
"Hmm? Oh yeah, I'm fine..."
"You sure? You look like you're about to fall over, to be honest."

Hmm...I take it, my dehydration must already be showing more than I thought.
"I...am merely thirsty, that's all," I reply truthfully.
"You see, my species isn't built for being without water for an extended period of time? And by 'extended' I mean two days tops, one day if it's hot."

Sirus let's out a whistle and replies, "Then I guess we'd better find some water quickly...I mean, I can go without water for three days easily enough and, if need be, last another 7...but I guess you're a lot more frail than me, huh?"

I smile wearily and educate him, "Please do not forget that we are different species, Sirus. My ancestors came from the ocean...how long do fish usually manage to live without water?"
"I...am afraid I don't know what 'fish' are, Nym."
"...never mind then."

We keep walking and I can feel the sun drying me out mercilessly, even though I do try to stick to the shadows.

At some point, Sirus stops and tells me that he needs to 'take a leak'.
The nerve! I am withering away and he bluntly tells me that he needs to pee!
The saddest thing however?
I am actually entertaining the idea of asking him to pee on me, if only to rehydrate my skin a little bit, but I'd never live that one down.

No, I'd rather die of thirst than humiliate myself like that.

After he vanishes around the corner I hear the sound of running water and it almost drives me nuts.
I force my thoughts to return to the better times on the ship.
To the clean and pristine pool, the readily available water from the faucets, the elegantly crafted recycling mechanisms.

Suddenly, Sirus asks, "Nym? You still with me?"
I open my eyes and look at Sirus in surprise as I reply, "You...are done? But..."
"What's wrong?"
"I...thought you were still..." I stutter, as a sudden realization hits me.

I can still hear water flowing and it's not Sirus' peeing!

I quickly orient myself after the source of the noise and stagger towards it, not speaking a single word.

Sirus follows after me, apparently not quite sure what I'm trying to do, but thankfully also keeping quiet, so I can focus on the dripping of water.

After a few steps, the noise gets louder and after a few minutes, we stand in front of a small river, maybe a large step wide, which runs straight through the trees and down a rocky rift.

Sirus kneels down and says, "Well, what do you know. Nice find, Nym."
He just wants to take a sip, but despite me craving it myself, reason yells at me to not let him.

I slap him on the wrist and shout, "No, you'll get sick!"

He looks up to me, obviously annoyed, while I rack my brain for a solution for our current dilemma.

Finding water was one thing.
Making it safe for drinking is another.