Tanith

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I walked through the darkness of the forest, stepping over branches and watching the same children around me. Most were confused, not understanding the gravity of the situation while others....

Others you could tell just knew.

"What's going on?" One finally asked after walking in silence for a long period of time. "Why are we leaving?" My heart started to pound out of my chest.

I glanced back, meeting one of the adults eyes. Without speaking, I asked a wordless question, "Should I tell them?" A moment passed before they shook their head. "Lie." They seemed to whisper. I gulped a little bit before turning to the small child, her innocent green eyes bore into mine. I gave them my best smile possible in my current state.

"We need to go somewhere. A short vacation for a while. Think of it as a Field Trip! You'll be home soon." I smiled in reassurance and held in all of the doubts and worries. Truth was, I had no idea when they could go home. Hopefully soon or they'll know I lied and want the real answer. Eventually, they'll find out, every little kid does but for right now, they needed to be calm. They needed to get to safety.

We stopped for the night, setting up camp. Even though not much distance was left, this group was full of kids, really young ones at that. They needed their rest.

The kids were setting up their makeshift beds with what they had but I could not stop the panic pulsing through my body. My eyes shot around at the kids, and back the way we came. I pondered for a while before nodding my head. I had come to a decision. Moving quickly, I confronted one of the others.

"I need to go back." I said finally, talking low enough so no one else could hear. "Why?" They inquired, eyebrows knitting together. "I need to know if anything happened yet. Call it anxiety or disquietude but I just need a peek. Mind manning the station while I'm away?" Their face seemed unsure about it but gave in anyways. They understood. "I suppose. They are pretty quiet and obedient kids so I hopefully won't have much trouble. Be swift okay?" I nodded and set out again.

The underwater forest was dark and gloomy, light only came from the glowing moon, far up in the sky, barely doing anything. Unfortunately, it was all I had. Flashlights or waterproof lanterns would draw too much attention to this area and that was the last thing I needed. It didn't take too long, traveling on my own was much faster than with twenty or so children. At the edge of the trees, I scrutinized the land in front.

A flash of light filled my vision and caused the feeling of horror to fill my body.

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My eyes flew open, as did my mouth. Shooting right up in my bed, I painted as if I just ran a mile without stopping. My mind scattered and common sense was out the window. It took me longer than I'd like to admit before I collected myself again. I took in a deep breath, before tranquility filled myself once again and I let it all out. I closed my eyes, my wandering mind found itself back to my dream, unable to think of anything else. Is it really a dream if it really happened? I pondered the question for a while before coming to a conclusion. No, it would be a memory, even if you are sleeping.

I finally got up and moving once I had the will to and found myself wandering out of my bedroom and to the living room, plopping down on the couch with a short breath being let out with it. PTSD can really be a pain, though that was a cakewalk considering what it could have been. Normally it was much worse, which was good. It meant I was getting better. It's about time too.

I suppose I have been settling down for a while. Before I came to Atlantis I was taking a break, not to mention that Atlantis hasn't had too many battles. Perhaps he was right.

Though the dreams weren't too bad, I still was shaken, uneasiness still lingered, clinging on to me like the parasite it was. Fortunately, I had experienced this before and one of the ways to get it out of my system was to walk it off. Literary. For some odd reason, walking to clear my head was the best cure I had found for it.

I packed some supplies including snacks, a map and medical supplies, mostly out of habit. I always keep it on my person, even if it's a bit much to bring everything. Well, almost everything. I don't bring the extreme surgical stuff because that seems excessive, plus things like heart replacement and such isn't my specialty.

Then I left without looking back.

I swam forward and started to move about the large city. It was about Midnight or so, so not many citizens were still up. Shops were closed and most guards looked half asleep or a bit too awake, like they just chugged coffee and it was kicking in. One particular guard proved my theory when I passed by, his eyes wide and the pupils small, his fingers twitched with energy. I weaved around the pillars and other things in the way, my mind in somewhere totally different.

My thoughts straying from topic to topic. Before I knew it, I left the city, but I didn't stop. Maneuvering my long reptilian tail how I wanted it to, I was somewhere new. The coral was still here but the monorails were fading from view as a strolled along, now on rock. Does PTSD ever truly go away? I wondered. It might stay forever... I guess it is my fault for choosing the job in the first place. I knew what I was getting into.

My eyes gazed up at the plant life growing here. If it took me here, how bad could it have been for me? This is a beautiful place after all, not to mention I have a house again. I haven't had one since... I counted the years.

Huh. It been much longer than I thought. Time flies when you're busy.

A gleam caught my attention and drew me towards it. Giant crystal rocks were shining. Dimly, sure, but still magnificent and stunning as they could. They appeared to be blue to my eyes. They were tall, looking like they had shot out of the ground from an angle, making an awkward triangle. Nonetheless, they were beautiful. I stood there, dazzled by the view and a warm feeling crept into my heart. Seeing them just felt so right. Like I was- I shook it off. No need to mention it. It was a little painful to think about. Averting my gaze elsewhere, I tried to focus on anything.

Then a question hit me.

Where am I?

I had never been this far from the palace. For the weeks I had been here, I never felt confident enough to leave quite yet. But now, I was.... Somewhere new.

Good thing I brought a map. I sighed in relief and pulled out the atlas of Atlantis, staring blankly at the map. It took longer than I'd ever care to admit, but eventually, I came to an answer.

"Sector Four huh?" I muttered and put it away and found my sight returning to the glimmering rock. "I guess this place is pretty special. Another though occurred to me when I did a 360. "Not much wildlife around here... I wonder why." I took steps out, scanning everything.

My heart dropped when I saw something laying on the ground, or rather, someone.

Rushing forward gave me a good view of it every movement I came closer. It was a purple being with pure white eyes and some sort of black getup. The head was quite rectangular with more of a circular head at the top and coming out of its mouth were four red like tongues or something similar to it. It seemed to be bleeding from the stomach. Behind him seemed to be an enormous opening to a cave, but I ignored it. I had something more important at hand.

"Hey, do you require any assistance?" I asked as formally as I could. Normally, people respond better to it. The being did not answer but did look up. Fear flashed in it's eyes and the being tried to back away. "Here." I pulled out the large First Aid Kit that was with me, showing it off. Though Magic would have been easier, I had no idea what this creature was and if it acted badly to Healing Magic, there would be nothing I could do. "I'm going to help you." I spoke slowly and calmly as I could produce. The purple being hesitated, but their shoulders relaxed. Slow movements allowed me to advance non-intimidatingly. I bend down, getting to the level of the creature and carefully placed down medical supplies. My eyes traced over the open wound, able to identify bite marks from it.

"Were you attacked?" They paused, examining my eyes as if looking for something. "Yes." They said simply. So it can talk. This makes my job so much easier.

"By what?" I prompted them, giving them an encouraging nod.

"Rock Python."

"Hmm... Nasty bite but infection nor poison is in it which is good. If I just," I rummaged through the supplies. Endless medical supplies was in there and yet everything I found couldn't be used for this situation. "Find the-"

"HEY!"

My head shot up at the sound of an angry and hostile voice. A wave of alarm followed. A strange hum filled the air, the sound of something powering up. Though there was somebody there, all my mind could focus on was the strange gray gun, pointed right at me.

I forced myself to observe the being holding it, instead of so many other things my mind wanted me to do. Guns can't be reasoned with, but their owner can be. Words echoed through my mind.

Just like the being in front of me, this one had a full body of purple but their actual body was much different. Oval yellow eyes narrowed at my form and were full of distrust and suspicion. A singular brown bandoleer came across the shoulder and wrapped around the waist, but held no bullets of any kind. They had many tentacles, two were being used as arms and held some sort of strange gun in hand, the rest acted as legs, moving enough for them to bob in the water, moving up and down. Their head was shaped almost like a torpedo.

It looked like they came from the opening in the side of the wall, a cave if you will. Maybe I should have paid attention to that...

"What do you think you're doing? Did you hurt him? Who are you? What are you doing on my land? What are you doing here?" So many questions were asked at once. My mind began to spin with them until I focused on them one at a time. By the tone of their voice I'd say they're male. The only response I had was to hold my hands up, palms facing them. "Calm down. Deep breaths." I spoke softly. I kept my tone calm, even if my heart was not. They didn't respond well to this. "I WILL NOT CALM DOWN! ANSWER ME!" He roared back, coming closer, gun still pointed right at me.

Panic flared inside me, but I held it down. "I'm helping your friend here and I'd like to continue doing that." I answered one of the questions I remembered. His eyes shifted, un-trusting of my statement. "It's true boss." The injured being finally spoke getting both of our attention. "She's just helping out." The 'Boss' listen to the words, but they barely seems to be of comfort. He inched forward, eyes squinted at the other one. "Who is 'She'?"

"You know, you can just ask this 'She'." I suggested lightly, flashing a quick smile. He shifted his gaze back at me, letting out a small and slightly frustrated sigh. "What's your name?" He said finally. I smiled. "Tanith." I said while getting out something to clean up the wound. He was silent for a moment before the inevitable question came up.

"So you're some sort of hybrid?"

I snickered. "Every time." I mumbled to myself. "What was that?" 'Boss' immediately asked. "Nothing important. Yes, by the way. Human and Serpent." I began to work on the open wound, first cleaning up the area with some mild ointment and solutions. However, when I did, they hissed in pain. The 'Boss' instantly reacted to it. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO HIM?" He demanded, clutching the gun a little tighter.

"It's just some solutions to clear the wound. It's only stinging, nothing bad. I promise."

"Oh really? How do I know you aren't POISONING HIM?" He hissed at me. It took every bone in my body to not roll my eyes.

"Please. If I were poisoning him, I'd do it at the end and excuse it for some sort of disinfecting shot. Plus, Poison takes a while to act upon the body, not instantly stinging."

He blinked at my answer. "Huh." Was all he said. His eyes darted, not looking at me. "That's... Interesting." The words managed to come out. I chuckled and kept going, applying mild pressure to the wound, then dressing it carefully with a white cloth. "What are you doing?" The purple being examined my work while it was being dressed. He leaned in causing my medical instinct to kick in. "Whoa! Stand back a bit please!"

"What? Why?"

"I need to concentrate. This isn't easy you know."

'Boss' just grumbled a bit. "Fine, fine. Here, is this okay?"

He moved back. I nodded in approval. "Seems appropriate." Then returned to it. Something occurred to me while I worked. "Hey, I just realized I don't know your name." He gave me a blank stare at first. Soon it transformed into disbelief. "Are you serious? You have no idea who I am?" I returned the blank stare. "That explains some things..." He huffed and rolled his eyes. "What have you been living under a rock or something?" I shook my head. "I did just come to Atlantis." I spoke in my defense. "Oh. That makes sense." Silence passed as I finished up.

"KrakenKid."

"Hmm?"

"That's my name. It's KrakenKid."

I grinned brightly. "Well, KrakenKid, it was nice meeting you! Your buddy here-" I was cut off. "Illithid." He corrected me. I couldn't stop myself from playfully eye rolling. "Your Illithid here is all ready to go." I gave the still injured being the okay with a thumbs up and helped him stand up. "Make sure he doesn't overwork himself and to have someone medical to redress the wound when it gets old. Got it?" KrakenKid just nodded in response.

"Good." I beamed and held out my hand to him. "It was nice meeting you both. I hope next time we meet I don't get a gun pointed at me." I joked getting a tiny laugh out of him. He eyed my hand before hesitantly shaking it.

He turned and left, the Illithid following him into the cave, saying "Thank You For Helping Me." as he left. The kraken glanced back, still not trusting to turn his back on me, as if I'd suddenly try and kill him. I ignored this fact and just waved. The purple figure awkwardly gave a wave back.

When they were out of sight, I turned back and slowly found my way back to my house. I lazily started to put away everything I had, eating some of my snack as I did. After that, I kept my Staff in my hand and headed to my room sluggishly.

Before I knew it, I had crashed on my bed, the thoughts of today's late night or early morning events. Though some parts floated in my mind for a while, I was too tired to decipher them. Soon enough, I was fast asleep.  

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This is where the true story starts! :)

Also I just realized that this is not only the first time I wrote it in Tanith's point of view but also the first person I used outside of Cody. Anyways, tell me what you think and enjoy!

--JustAnAtlantisWriter