When Kanan awoke, the sound was gone. The sun had begun to set, a reddish glow blanketing the forest. The cries of beasts couldn't be heard either, as the daytime creatures settled down and the nightlife had yet to stir.
With a groan, he pushed himself up into a seated position. His body was heavy, wracked with exhaustion and weighed down by wet clothing. A sharp pain came from his arm, causing him to grimace. Upon examination, blood was seeping through his sleeve. His arm moved, but the wound would need to be treated.
Where am I?
Disoriented, he tried to get his bearings. He had gone looking for food, entered the forest, found a popple tree and then…
Ah, right. He had jumped into the river to escape the Melody Flowers.
Pop, pop, pop
A sound caught his attention and his eyes narrowed in confusion. Bubbles floated around him, rising through the air before popping and spreading out into a light mist.
Bubbles? How?
Kanan looked down, searching for the source of the bubbles, and found himself eye to… eyes. Eight beady blue eyes stared back at him from below.
Kanan screamed and leapt backwards, temporarily forgetting his pain. The owner of the eyes, a small white beast, grabbed a fern and hid itself underneath. Remembering his earlier spirit beast encounters, Kanan tried to run. To his dismay though, his body wouldn't listen. He had barely taken two steps before he dropped to his knees, exhausted. His muscles were still bruised and tired, and without further rest any large movements were impossible.
Slumping down in defeat, Kanan warily appraised the creature. It was unfamiliar to him, but it resembled a large spider. On its head lay two large disc-like eyes, each accompanied by three smaller, bead-like eyes, dotted underneath the larger eyes like teardrops. Its body was white, with the ends of its legs tinged blue. Its head was large compared to the rest of it, and combined with its chubby body and 8 stumpy legs Kanan thought it looked more silly than threatening.
Kanan wasn't particularly fond of bugs, but he had to admit that the silly creature trembling under its leaf was cute. Not how he would have imagined a spider beast.
But he wasn't going to underestimate it just from its appearance, he had learned his lesson. Now, however, his wariness was useless. He wasn't in any shape to move, let alone fight.
Giving up mentally, exhaustion overcame Kanan once more and he slid to the ground, his consciousness fading for a second time.
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The next time that Kanan awoke, he felt much better. He was alive, somehow, and his battered body had recovered a bit. Stretching his legs, he confirmed that he was able to move at least, though his hunger pangs were worse than ever.
Sitting up, he examined himself and was surprised to see that his bleeding arm had been tied with a white thread.
Did I do this? No, I've never seen this thread before.
Kanan recalled the spider that he had seen before falling asleep. Could it have helped him? He knew that spirit beasts were smart, but he had never heard of one saving a person before. Looking around, though, it was nowhere to be found.
Maybe that's for the best, he figured. It was cute, but he didn't want to deal with any more spirit beasts if he could help it.
Having confirmed that he was alone, Kanan assessed his situation. A thought came to mind and he looked up at the sky, his expression darkening. It was too late to return. He didn't know how far he had traveled downstream, and traversing the forest in the dark was not an option.
He supposed he'd have to sleep in a tree for the night and hope for the best. Picking out a suitable one with low, thick branches, he prepared to climb but a familiar sound echoed from behind him.
Pop, Pop, Pop
Turning around, he witnessed the little spider from earlier scuttling through the woods, happily blowing bubbles from its mouth. But there was something curious about it this time. Its front two legs held up a fluffy, net-like web, with which it carried a small pile of fruits.
It had almost reached him before it noticed his stare, causing the creature to stop blowing bubbles and drop its fruits in shock.
Kanan laughed. For such a timid creature it sure was careless.
Seeing him laugh, the little spider stomped its feet. Whether it was in embarrassment or anger, he wasn't sure. Still, the interaction broke the ice between them, and the creature grabbed one of the fruits before hesitantly approaching Kanan and placing it at his feet.
Kanan was surprised. He figured that the fruit was the spider's dinner, but had it actually gone out of its way to find food for him? He was further convinced that the bandage was this little guy's doing. Why was it so friendly?
Now that he thought about it he had woken up quite far from the riverbank, too. Was that the spider's doing as well?
Inwardly, he was doubtful that such a small critter could have moved him, but spirit beasts were mysterious.
Regardless, he wasn't in a position to turn down the friendly spider's charity. He picked up the fruit and bit into it greedily, juice streaming down his chin.
His eyes widened at the taste. Whatever this fruit was, it was far more delicious than anything he had tried in the village. With each bite his body coursed with energy, revitalizing him and clearing his mind. He scarfed the fruit down, and in a few seconds it was gone.
Kanan wasn't sure if he was biased due to his hunger, but it was the best meal he had eaten in ages. A few minutes and fruits later his ravenous appetite was finally satisfied, and he smiled gratefully at the little spider.
Seeing him eat the food, the spider hopped up and down, clicking happily with its mouth.
Chikchikchikchik.
"Thanks little guy, I owe you one."
He reached out to give the spider a pat but it dodged his hand. Having done what it came to do, it scurried away into the brush.
Kanan gave a wry smile, mentally thanked the little spider once again, and set up on his branch for the night.
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The night was uneventful, and in his exhaustion Kanan slept as well as he could have hoped to given the circumstances.
When dawn broke, he climbed down from his perch and set off immediately. As much as he would've liked to see the spider again, he had to get out of the forest. The next beast he encountered was not guaranteed to be so friendly.
He didn't know where he was but the forest was to the north of the village, so walking south should get him there eventually. Kanan figured that he couldn't be too far from the entrance. If the water had taken him miles away then he would've drowned.
Going south, he traveled through the woods for a few minutes before a commotion erupted in the brush ahead of him. Reacting fast, he ducked behind a tree, stilling his breath and listening intently.
GRRAAWWWRRR
A threatening growl echoed through the air. That was all Kanan had to hear – he quickly prepared to turn around and take a detour, before a rapid clicking sound stopped him in his tracks.
Chikchikchikchik
He knew that click. And, given how close he was to his resting area, the chance of it being something else was small.
Realistically, Kanan knew that he should just leave. What was he going to do? The spider was probably stronger than him anyway. But despite the logic, he found himself unable to go.
Pressing himself low to the ground, he snuck closer to the source of the sound, moving forward until the beasts were visible. The sight caused his stomach to drop like a stone.
The spider was visibly injured, a long gash running across its abdomen. Particles of energy rose from the wound, scattering into the air. In front of it, a wolf-like beast hunched over, preparing to launch its next attack. Sparks of blue electricity coursed through its fur, giving off a threatening crackle. Next to the spider a patch of earth was scorched and smoking, no doubt the result of the wolf's previous attack.
Clearly there was no time to waste, and Kanan's feet moved faster than his head. He lunged forward and tackled the spider out of the way. The wolf barreled past, its claws barely missing the duo. Panicked, Kanan scooped the spider into his arms before rushing to his feet and bolting away.
The wolf was confused by Kanan's unexpected intervention, taking a moment to process the situation. The confusion only bought a moment of time though, and it erupted with fury upon realizing that its prey was being stolen out from under its nose.
Glancing back, Kanan despaired as he confirmed that he was being chased. The wolf was gaining on him at a breakneck speed. He could hear the hum of the Melody Flower colony getting louder, so the forest's exit couldn't be far, but there was no chance of him making it there.
Wait. The Melody Flowers?
Kanan's eyes lit up. There was a chance!
Earlier, he had wondered how the Melody Flowers survived in such a dangerous forest despite being peaceful and weak, but his earlier experience had answered that question. Individually they might not be much, but thousands of them together is terrifying.
And, while there might be some apex predators capable of taking on a full colony, Kanan was confident that this wolf was not one of them. If it were he would already be dead.
With a new goal in mind Kanan adjusted his course, sprinting straight in the direction of the song. As he did an electric buzz rang out from behind him, a blue bolt flying past where his head had just been. The bolt traveled ahead, smashing into a tree with a thunderous bang. The sight made Kanan pale in fear. One hit from that attack and it was over.
In his arms, the spider weakly pushed against him, as if telling him to put it down.
I appreciate the thought buddy, but I don't think that thing's letting me off the hook anymore. We're in this together now.
Once again an ominous buzz came from behind him, causing Kanan to instinctively dive to the side. He narrowly avoided another bolt of lightning soaring through the trees, but the attack had done its job. Kanan's momentum came to a halt and the ferocious wolf closed the distance in an instant.
Before Kanan could get back on his feet, the wolf pounced. It viciously pinned him to the ground, the electricity on its fur numbing his body. He found himself completely restrained. The wolf stared down from above him, baring its teeth in triumph.
Kanan grit his teeth. He had been so close. Out of the corner of his eye he could see the clearing in the distance, color peeking through the trees. He glanced over at the spider, hoping that it could make a run for it at least, but it was unconscious.
Then, as the wolf opened its jaws, a sound rang out that caused Kanan's skin to crawl. The familiar piercing wails rang through the forest, quickly rising in volume. A look of terror crossed the wolf's face and it fled without hesitation, leaving Kanan behind.
The Melody Flowers? But why now? We didn't even set foot in the clearing. Were they attacked?
His thoughts racing, Kanan came to two realizations. The first was that the lightning that he had dodged seconds prior must have flown into the clearing.
The second was that he had to run. Now.
Taking the spider, Kanan shot off in a different direction from the wolf. It was a familiar situation, but the one saving grace was that he had started from outside the clearing this time. Given his head start, he just barely managed to escape the range of the ensuing destruction.
The direction he had chosen randomly was also favorable, as he found himself southward-bound. Once again, he wasn't sure if he was lucky or unlucky.
He shook his head. On second thought? Definitely unlucky. With any luck he wouldn't have gotten into this situation to begin with.
Running for a few minutes, Kanan reached the edge of the forest. He gave a self-deprecating laugh. At most he had traveled a twenty or thirty minute walk's worth of distance, but getting that far had taken him a full day and several life-threatening experiences.He vowed to never underestimate the wild again.
Finally safe, Kanan took a moment to check on the spider, concerned. Confirming its injuries, his face fell. He might not know much about spirit beasts but it didn't look good. The long gash on the spider's abdomen was still releasing energy, and it hadn't regained consciousness. He had to get it help fast.
Rallying the last of his stamina, Kanan took off for the village, a destination already in mind. There were very few spirit beast experts among the villagers, but there was one notable exception: Argana, the village herbalist.
Kanan never met her, but he heard that she had once traveled the world, only returning to Harmony Village in her old age. According to rumors the woman was reclusive and ill-tempered, but she was his only chance.