The Guide to Dying Properly

Contest entry for THE BATTLE OF THE STORIES [Round One]

The Guide to Dying Properly
[Not really a guide, but Greely learns stuff anyway]

The phantom’s conquest of Jamaa hadn’t been completely without reason, contrary to what most current text-books teach their readers. After the Great Peace Pact, during which each animal race had announced its willingness to create a civilization where predator, prey and everything in between would live as equal, was one of the main reasons of Jamaa’s fall. While it sounded like it should have had a positive impact on Jamaa and its inhabitants, there were many negatives that followed.

The animals once classified as only-meat-eaters (such as lions, tigers or eagles) had to find new food; forcing them to turn to manufactured and chemically produced meat, while others such as bears and wolves lived off of vegetables, fruits and small insects. Any additional nutrients they needed had to be created manually.

Even before the phantoms, heavy duty machines were implemented as everyday objects used to transport what the more capable animals weren’t able to. Lions and bears could only handle so much, afterall. Creating dens, building stores and producing new products took serious manual labour, which was replaced with machines that slowly, inch by inch, started polluting the lands of their beloved Jamaa.

Phantoms are creatures who’re pulled toward pollution by nature. Over millennia’s they’ve learned how to create engines and instruments that spread waste and disease to everyone and everything around them. Though they’ve been looked down upon because of their assumed lack of intelligence, it should be noted that they’re not as stupid as they’re portrayed in news outlets and history books. Phantoms have been known to create hierarchies, making their own ‘phantom kings’ who then keep the rest in line. On their own they might be easy to dispose of, but once they gather in hoards (from 20 to over 100 phantoms), they can potentially lead to the destruction of large cities and towns.

The factories mentioned before act as nesting grounds to keep young phantoms safe until they’re powerful enough to help their brothers and sisters pollute more land. They aren’t as evolved as most species currently under the ‘Great Peace Pact’, but it’s said they could reach such a level of intelligence in the next few decades or so.

It shouldn’t have come as a surprise that the phantoms decided to take over Jamaa the second they saw it.

The vile creatures stole food and polluted water to the point of it becoming undrinkable, causing great death and sickness to overtake the lands.

And who does one turn to, when sick and poor? Who does one come to, crawling on their knees and crying for help?

Who is there for you when all is lost?

God, of course. Or in this case, gods.

Mira and Zios, ancient and tattered souls who’ve pledged loyalty to the lands of Jamaa, started dying along with it. The weakened gods listened to the cries of their people, their wishes for a better day and a more bearable reality.

Zios, already too old and too tired to travel so far, gave Mira the demand to go search for someone, anyone who would be worthy and strong enough to fight back againced the phantoms.

Such ‘someone’s’ were found weeks of travel away from Jamaa

Mira handpicked seven animals-

The gentle yet hard-working Liza,

The independent and reliable Peck,

The intelligent as well as patient Cosmo

The humours yet creative Graham

The honourable and soft-spoken Gilbert

The feisty as well as methodical Alex,

And last but not least,

A mysterious and strange wolf, who didn’t give Mira its name.

She prayed to whatever gods that have existed before her, and to all of those that shall exist after her inevitable demise; ‘Please, grant these creatures the power to clean our decaying land of its rubbish, and let our souls dance with purity once more’

---

Greely made himself comfortable, trying to adjust to the aggressive (yet somewhat comforting) flow of wind that threatened to throw him off of the gigantic bird. No matter how tempting it was, he was extremely careful to not dig his claws into the feathery carpet underneath him.

The wolf, along with the others was seated on the back of the almighty god, strapped in and waiting for the ride to this so called ‘Jamaa’ to be over.

Mira, after finding all of the animals she came for, offered to give them a lift to their destination. The god was huge, probably capable of carrying a mountain on her back if she’d wanted to, which made the journey all the more comfortable. The last thing he needed was to be mushed in-between random strangers while suspended a couple thousand meters in the air.

Once he was sure he wouldn’t topple over the next time ‘Mira’ decided to flap her wings, he finally let himself glance around at the animals before him.

A purple rabbit was laying on her back, snoring softly as her ears twitched with every flap of the god’s gigantic wings. Next to her lay a tiger- its pattern was mundane, the usual dark blue and orange fur that was slowly becoming popular these days. He seemed to be having an easier time holding on than Greely, looking almost relaxed as he yawned slightly. Damn cat, if only the wind would blow him off as soon as possible.

Greely only spared the rest of them a glance- a koala clinging to the bird’s feathers for dear life as it tried not to be whisked away and plummeted into the desert below, while at the base of the god’s neck sat a zebra, enthusiastically chatting up a monkey.

The wolf furrowed its brows. He swore he could count- he finished primary school.

One, two, three, four, five… five animals. Not counting him, which made it six. Weren’t seven animals picked to head to Jamaa?

He remembered a panda being pulled from the crowd, black braid hanging off her shoulder and a smile that could stop even the most bloodthirsty of animal in their tracks.

Did she get left behind? If so, then good; no need for incompetent animals to get sent into war and die pathetically. Like that rabbit over there. And the tiger. Those two could fall off and Greely probably wouldn’t have even batted an eye.

He slowly lowered himself, letting his muscles go lax for a while. They were being flown to their destination, which gave them a whole lot of time to save up the energy they’d surly needed after landing.

Just as he was about to let his eyes close and sleep take over, he watched as another body dropped next to him. The koala had one hand over his green hat, keeping it in place, while the other tightly hugged at the feathers below to keep him from falling. Ah, so the bear finally managed to calm down a little bit.

“Well, isn’t this just a lovely view when you ignore the immense danger we’re in” he grinned, eyes glancing over to his companion before turning back to the maze of canyons and sandpits they were currently flying over.

Squinting, Greely stared out into the vast wasteland before deeming it as uninteresting as the small talk he was being swindled into.

“I’m Cosmo- I’m my village’s herbologist, but I study medicine as well” he flashed another grin the wolf’s way. Greely’s tongue was dry. He wondered if they’d get food and water once they arrive.

“…that’s nice. You must work hard” he heard himself say. The koala nodded, before going off on a rant about how many books he’s had to buy ever since he’s decided to become a doctor, about how much time he’s spent walking around the town and examining every living plant and animal, collecting data and studying it thoroughly.

Greely was about to daze off, when he felt someone nudge his shoulder.

“Hey, it’s rude to sleep when someone’s speaking. Am I bothering you that much?” the bear- Cosmo- said, amused. Greely just grunted, contemplating kicking the other off the bird’s side just to have it over with. The koala laughed before falling silent.

Finally.

The wolf spent a few minutes getting used to the cool wind blowing through his fur, too unnerved to sleep when someone was literally hovering over him. But he felt at peace, comfortable, even.

“Who’re you?” Cosmo asked, yet his eyes stayed on the landscape surrounding them. Mira flapped a few times, rising higher. The wind grew stronger.

“If you don’t want to tell me your name, then who were you in your town? Do you have family?” the koala questioned, frowning. He brought his knees up to his chest, while his hands continued their death-grip on the god’s feathers. There was a beat of silence before the bear let out a sigh.

“I’m sorry if I’m being nosey. I think I’m just scared” he admitted, tilting his head towards the setting sun that stretched itself before them. Greely noticed his ears were turned towards the koala. Huh. Maybe he was subconsciously interested in what the other had to say.

“You know… it’s more probable that we’ll die rather then live. That we… won’t survive the war, you know- “Cosmo cut himself off, before continuing “-and I… I always planned to die peacefully. It might seem a bit morbid, to plan your death, but that’s just… it’s the only constant that you’ll find in life. That you’ll one day die. I had so much I wanted to do before I die- I… I wanted to set up a hospital in my village. A proper one, not the small clinic that can hardly fit two animals inside. I’d create a hospital, and once I gained enough knowledge, I’d start training other animals to work there. I always loved teaching, always wanted to have students who’d later become respected and loved. They’d save lives. They’d make me proud” a small smile painted itself across the koala’s face. His eyes were glazed over, not fully there. Suddenly, Greely’s throat felt even more dry than before.

“But fate has a funny sense of humour, does it not?” the bear finally turned to Greely, and the wolf wasn’t sure what to make of him. Mira soared lower, the air turning more humid, making it a bit more difficult to breath.

“The probability of us dying is greater than us surviving. I don’t want to die among strangers, Wolf“ he said, swallowing as he went back to staring at the sun’s retreating shape.

I don’t want to die among strangers.

“…I was an archivist back in my town. Spent my days writing about things nobody really cared about. Whenever I could afford it, I liked buying myself fancy quills. Made my senseless scribbling more enjoyable.”

Cosmo didn’t look back at him for the rest of the ride, but his smile seemed to widen after that.

I don’t want to die among strangers.

---

They knew they reached their destination before Mira even started slowing down. Any trees that were scattered across the endless desert bellow were either wilting and dried to the core, or they were getting there. The air was drier, and had a weird sort of smell that made Greely’s nose itch. This might come as a problem, should he need his keen sense of smell.

Once they came across a small patch of trees, they started descending. The forest seemed better, healthier. The leaves weren’t a perfect green, the roots were still thin and clearly dehydrated, but compared to the trees the animals saw on their way here, these looked quite well off.

The landing was a bit rocky, with the goddess almost throwing them off of her back in the process. Mira apologized, explaining that this had been the first time she had been tasked with carrying living, breathing animals (which insinuated that she’s carried non-living, non-breathing animals before, which, okay).

From the air, the forest looked small, but once Mira led them inside, the looming trees and myriad of branches made Greely think otherwise.

The wolf padded after the group, keeping a bit of distance. They were quiet, contrary to how they behaved during the flight. Though it made them more bearable to be around, it was quite unnerving.

Cosmo hung at the back, and Greely almost wondered if he was doing it for the wolf’s benefit. But soon enough Alex trotted up next to the koala and indulged him in idle chatter.

Greely gazed through the trees, and while thin they were plentiful, enough to leave him guessing what lay hidden behind them. He also noticed that the farther into the forest they went, the sturdier the trees became, their leaves greener.

His head jerked forward after someone gasped up ahead. The animals seem to have stopped, frozen in place while Mira continued into a clearing. Greely pushed passed someone, too curious with what lay before him to even notice who he nudged aside.

They were huddled under a stone arch with ancient runes lining its pillars, and though it seemed to be hundreds of years old, it was in perfect shape. That just proved the genius of whoever constructed it. Mira didn’t bother with the stone entrance, instead using her massive wings to push off of the ground and jump into the clearing with one loud ‘whoosh’. To the right of the opening lay two enormous temples, clearly long abandoned judging by the vines crawling out the windows and grass desperately trying to grow in the building’s cracked walls. To the left stood a less impressive, but still beautiful chamber, it’s door permanently stuck shut with a rusty lock. A statue of a disproportional elephant rest atop the cube-like construction. Its ears were too small, trunk too long, tusks too… unimpressive; yet it matched its surroundings with a similar aura of something ancient, unknown, intriguing.

Mira turned around to face the newcomers, spreading her wings wide from one side of the clearing to the other, as if creating a wall between them and the rest of the eerie forest.

“We’ve arrived, Zios!” the god called from her perch between the temples.

Greely felt his legs tremble, and found that keeping himself standing upright was quite the task to accomplish. Glancing around at his companions, he saw that they too were starting to shake, slowly lowering themselves onto the ground.

The wolf, without even contemplating it, bowed his head to the grassy forest floor, following the other’s lead.

Mira was still standing in the clearing, but her feathers were being ruffled by a soundless wind, and there was something there. Something in the temples, something inside the clearing, something inside the forest.

And even though Greely didn’t see him, he knew Zios was there. Zios, the god as old as time, the god blessed with leading their species- the animal species- was there. Was here. Sheer power radiated off of the untouchable god, filling all of the newcomer’s hearts with thankfulness and adoration. Adoration, Greely thought. What was he adoring? He had no idea. Neither had the others. All they knew was that Zios was here, and that they were here. They were thankful just basking in his presence.

“Zios, I have gathered the chosen ones. They’ll help destroy the phantoms. They’ll help break them apart, limb by limb, eye by eye. They’ll help us free our children from the toxic air and poisonous waters”

Mira’s voice was heard again, but the animals didn'’t hear her, couldn'’t hear her over the immense being that was Zios.

There seemed to be a sudden shift in the air, it’s humid and downright irritating smell turning light and almost relieved.

And as quickly as Zios came, he was gone.

One by one, the animals stood back onto their paws, and Greely still felt a little detached from the world surrounding him.

He’s met Zios.

They’ve met Zios.

Mira nodded, as if confirming to herself that she’s done good, that she may have found her land’s saviours.

“Get a rest. First thing tomorrow, I’ll explain Jamaa’s situation in more detail once Liza arrives- “Liza? Was that the panda? Why was she arriving separately?

…Was she getting special treatment?

“-I’ll show you maps and runes that will explain what I expect of you all. But for now, please, feel free to drink the clean water from the alcove under the chamber of knowledge- “she pointed one of her wings in its direction.

“-food will be served on the chamber’s second floor. Resting quarters are set up in the temple to the chamber’s right, and until tomorrow you’re free to read and study whatever you find on the first floor of the chamber, as well as in the Mystery Emporium. Once again, I greatly thank you for coming to fight for Jamaa” she finished, before launching herself into the air with one powerful flap of her wings.

After everyone recovered, they scattered throughout the clearing, most of them heading towards the temple to fill their empty stomachs. Greely stuck behind, treading up to the small alcove that secured a tiny pond full of what he hoped was drinkable water. He started taking care of his aching thirst as someone else joined him at the pond’s edge. From the corner of his eye he saw a zebra’s muzzle reach into the pond.

Maybe he’d get away without talking for now, since Alex didn’t seem all that eager to befriend him.

“Woah, it’s so clean I can see my reflection in the water!”

''Or maybe not. ''

He glowered up at the hooved creature, who was making stupid faces and watching her likeness copy them. Sticking her tongue out and trying to touch her nose earned her Greely’s signature glare, before the wolf went back to satisfying his stomach with as much water as he could.

“Ah, there you are, Alex! And Mr. Wolf is here, too!”

Dear god, no.

WIP 

[ i swear I'll finish it by the deadline e.e]