Time had gone by like fleeting wind, unable to recall the number of times he had fallen asleep while working on the branch. Kenan gulped down the last drops of water in his wooden container, managing to wet his dry throat but it sizzled away like drops of water on hot asphalt.
He glanced down into the darkness and then back at the Evolved Bloom, multiple wooden sticks protruded from its mesocarp.
Digging the mesocarp with the sharp edge of his katana, Kenan managed to push another stick in, preventing the Evolved Bloom from healing itself.
Slapping the unmoving fiend, he complained with a small, cracked voice, "Eat me, you bastard."
"…or should I just eat you instead." He groaned, resting his arched back on the tree.
Plagued with hunger and thirst, Kenan was tempted to climb down, however, he wouldn't have enough energy to climb back up if he made a trip to the lake. So, he rather spend all of his remaining energy here.
"Kenan."
Kenan's eyes flung open at the soft call of his name. A familiar face climbed onto the branch he was lying on from the tree trunk.
The lips on that hateful face stretched into a smile.
Kenan sprung up, brandishing his katana as he stared at the unwelcomed presence.
"My, my. It really is you. I sensed a person's presence a while ago but who would've guessed." He spoke calmly, stretching out a familiar bottle, "Want some water?"
Kenan glanced at the bottle in his hand and then back at his face, he said nothing in reply but simply stared cautiously at the Deserter whose face was brimming with a smile.
"Hmm." The Deserter withdrew his hand and sat on the far end of the branch, making sure to keep a distance from Kenan, "This Fold has been made known for a very long time, but since it was filled with non-motile beasts, it was deemed an E-rank Fold, well except for the gate's location. That was all it took to make this place a B-rank Fold.
Kenan ignored the Deserter's words, he stared down and could see the faint glow of the acidic lake under him. If he fell, he'd die immediately, hence he could've just rush into the offensive.
Not minding his listener's lack of attention, the Deserter continued, "You see, it was the same when I first came—filled with simple Evolved and Unevolved Blooms, until I discovered a Blood Bloom. And you know the rules, a person in possession of a biosync has the right to name a beast he or she discovers first."
Kenan's eyelids twitched, he looked away from the faint shadow of the glistening lake and turned his eyes to the Deserter.
"I named them, I watched them grow into worthy evolved beasts." He added while standing up. A small, bone dagger materialised in his hand as he locked eyes with Kenan, "And because of the very first of their kind, I called them Blood Blooms."
He slashed his own hand with the dagger while maintaining eye contact with Kenan.
Kenan watched with wide eyes as blood trickled down the Deserter's fingers.
-Slitttt!
A loud slithering sound broke the silence, accompanied by the sound of skin ripping. The young Deserter's face bearing a smile ripped revealing an older, wrinkled version. His hair turned grey and bags appeared underneath his eyes as he quickly lost the allure of youth. However, his voice remained as youthful as ever.
"My child would forever heed my call." He chuckled, "I am not a Deserter, kid, I am simply someone who has found meaning in this world. And anyone who enters this Fold should understand just how precious my children are."
In no time, the slithering sound had crossed through a long distance. The branch they were standing on creaked and Kenan gazed down to find the Bloom's bud opening.
Kenan, who was standing close to the opening bud, jumped away from it.
"So, receive the honour of feeding them with your unworthy body, I shall take whatever remains of you." He smiled and his body completely transformed, revealing an incredibly skinny old man with sunken cheeks and pale skin. The clothes on his body flailed like blankets, and the biosync on his wrist fell to his palm, held back from falling by his abnormally twisted thumb.
Trees that towered to the sky shoke like mere leaves on a dry branch and the rocks on the ground vibrated like weightless objects, the ear-piercing slithering sound got even closer and in no time, the silhouette of a Blood Bloom could be seen amidst the quivering trees.
It really did answer his call.
Kenan looked into the opening bud, he would be crushed immediately he jumped in, however, it was a more rewardable gamble than facing the Blood Bloom head on.
"Don't even think about it, Kenan. I might not be able to stop you but she will." The old man said whilst gesturing at the direction of the Blood Bloom. He threw the blood stained dagger at the Evolved Blood and it stabbed into its mesocarp.
"That dagger was made from the bone of a third-order beast, cost me quite a lot." He said, rubbing the foul black paste on his injury, he then put some of it in his mouth and smiled, "Good luck surviving."
The old man quickly climbed higher, disappearing into the canopy.
Kenan stared at the dagger stuck in the Bloom's mesocarp. It was too low for him to reach hence he couldn't pull it out. The blood on the dagger was attracting the Blood Bloom and once by it got here, it would destroy the Evolved Bloom.
How long would it take for the Blood Bloom to reach here? Having no time to think, fear and worry overtook his mind. He quickly tried to pull out the sticks but the mesocarp had healed around it. The acid might enter the internal parts of the Evolved Bloom if the sticks are not pulled out.
He could just give up this Evolved Bloom, however Unevolved Blooms could not withstand the heat of the acidic lake and would eventually succumb to the burn, and he wasn't sure if another Evolved Bloom existed here.
"Ah! Shit!"
Therefore, he couldn't give up this Bloom.
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I've been really busy with work and school so my update is rather slow and since y'all are not really making any efforts to support, I've decided to post at my own time. Support and I'll definitely put in more effort.