The wind hummed gently in the night, slightly brushing against the hut that stood out of place, amidst the greenery of the woodlands that enclosed it.
A soft sigh could be heard from within the hut.
One laced not with exhaustion but one that told anyone who heard that this person was disappointed.
I looked up at the hut's ceiling with my hand on my chest. I felt like hurling insults or even complaining but no one was around to be in the audience. None, except for the insects and beasts of the woods, that dared not encroach on the lush meadow like opening.
This meadow stood as an oasis in the desert, a desert of lush greenery, trapped below the never-changing skies of the night void of any clouds but filled with stars that lit up like fireflies.
I started through a small hole in the ceiling that acted as a window to peer at the moon whose light forced its way into the hut.
I gazed into the night sky not with intent, I had no goal for doing so, my eyes just aimlessly wandered the skies, as if counting the few stars visible from the small openings I had.
I was lost in thought and overcome with worry, my plate had a little too much on it, to spare the time or to make an attempt at removing myself from the questionable comfort my haystack bed provided.
A sudden rustle followed by the repeated chirp of an insect broke the silence of the hut. I tilted my head towards the source half hoping to find a small insect. Much like the grasshoppers I met when I first came to this world.
I was astonished at what stood by the entrance of the hut.
It looks at me
Not with hunger
Not with intent
Just pure curiosity
The sudden interruption provided me with enough reason to sit up and face what had interrupted my privacy.
My gaze was now fixated on the insect that rudely interrupted the peace I had present. A brown grasshopper the size of a cat stood by the entrance to the hut, seemingly surveying the premises.
It seemed curious yet alert its wings rustled when my sudden movements alerted it to my presence.
Its antenna twitched slightly as if it the surveying its surroundings
Was I prey
Was Ian the object of concern
Or a predator
The grasshopper seemed confused but curious
It's small glass-like eyes glistening as it reflected the moonlight and its wings continued to twitch preparing for a fight or flight response.
I didn't panic even in the presence of my uninvited guest, if anything I was also just as curious as it was.
From further inspection the grasshopper seemed battered, the ends of its wings were torn and it was missing a front leg, it was riddled with wounds.
Slashes akin to the gash of a blade but in multiples reminiscent of claw marks. It was evident this creature sought refuge to heal,
To escape the hardships that came with living a survival-of-the-fittest lifestyle.
"Stout arm." I tossed a pebble at the locust, and a fiery red streak zipped from where I sat in a flash and then vanished as the pebble left my fingers like a bullet from a pistol.
This skill is one I copied a while back. It's a muscle enhancement skill that also allows to user to use both arms naturally as if they had two strong arms that knew no awkwardness.
It's a skill that could also multiply the force that the hand could operate at whether that be; lifting, punching, pushing even throwing.
I had decided not to reply to my skills while training but I lacked to motivation to face this small insect with any intent or seriousness, especially with the sorry state it was in.
I released another sigh as I looked at the lifeless body figeting as the remaining life force drained from its carcass.
The stone I had thrown with my skill, left nothing but destruction in its wake and the remains of the locust fidgeted as it slowly lost and oozed its thick greenish goo before finally exhausting what energy it had remaining.
Now I had given myself a reason to get up from the confines of my makeshift bed.
Leaving a corpse on my doorstep was nothing but an invitation to predators.
The scent of a rotting corpse would not just attract the hungry, but also the bold and fearless who were confident in their strength enough to approach a strange man-made structure for a free snack.
I stood up slowly using my sole arm as a brace to ease my lump of a body onto my feet.
I trodded towards the entrance/exit of my hut before stopping and looking at the weapons that stood adjacent to the doorframe.
I strapped the Lashed Scabbard to my waist adjusting it to the perfect spot for carrying my sword.
After forcefully tightening it at the hips I grabbed my sword and allowed it to fall into the sheath blade-first.
Stepping outside the hut I grabbed the lifeless carcass of the locust and then pulled it away causing a streak of thick green goo to follow along as I embarked on a journey to dispose of the body like a cereal killer hiding evidence.
Step by step, I advanced towards to dense greenery that stood dark and ominous.
My destination, unconfirmed but my goal is predetermined, get this body as far away from my hut as possible.
I don't know what tore it apart but I completed the kill, the predator might still be out there and I had no desire to meet it. At least not in my current state, where my fighting abilities had been halved.
I looked up at the red and blue moon that stood side by side in the night sky, they were beautiful and inviting as such sights could not be seen back on earth.
There is no way two objects of such mass could stand side by side in space without gravity pulling them into a collision.
Yet here they stood defying physics or at least the laws of physics I knew of, yet they did it beautifully in a way that took you're breath away and kept you staring.