Feeding the Rumours

Sergeant paced between the rundown bus stop and the long-empty jewellery shop across the street, shaking his head. He stopped occasionally, pursing his lips, opening his mouth before closing it again with a breath, and continuing his tight circle on the old asphalt.

This is the most agitated Saskia has seen him in a while. She sat beneath the rusted panel of the bus stop’s roof with her snout following his restless walk back and forth. They hadn’t exchanged a word since she reported back from her patrol, and he promptly decided to research those odd oviraptors.

Whatever he found out worried him.

“You say that oviraptor was-”

“Tiainen,” Saskia interrupted him without a blink of an eye.

Sergeant frowned enough to stop him in his tracks. He looked at her blank face for a second before correcting himself and continuing his slow walk. “You say Tiainen was friendly and had no ounce of hostility in him.”

“Correct.”

“He had no seeds or odd plants about him?” He probed further, leaving just a breath of air between his questions. ”There was no mention of spreading anything? Or any warriors coming here to fight? He didn’t talk about any sort of court or any monarchs?”

Saskia’s gaze was steady on his and didn’t waver a bit from his face when she shook her head, slow and decisive. “No.”

The green-crested cryo halted in his step again, his back turned to her. There was a light sway in his tail, and his eyes focused on a crack in the road for a long moment. His jaw worked, chewing on the conspiracies running wild on the isles. A passing breeze did nothing to aid him in his contemplation. Clicking his tongue and taking a breath, he finally turned to face her.

“Then let’s keep the interactions friendly,” he addressed her directly, and he could’ve sworn he saw her muscles relax. He let out a short sigh towards the ground and shook his head before continuing. “But I need more information. The rumours are running wild, and there’s no way of knowing whether the newcomers are worth trusting.”

His eyes snapped back to Saskia, who merely looked back in her unexpressive way. For once, her eyes locked onto his rather than floating just shy of them. She knew what must go through his head and couldn’t disagree. One encounter with a friendly individual isn’t enough to parse whether the oviraptors, let alone other new species showing up, were truly peaceful. Tiainen could be an outlier.

“We should be careful with them,” she spoke up, though her tone was in favour of the strangers rather than the rumours. “He seemed nervous. If the others are like him, they are small and wiry. They aren’t fighters.” 

Sergeant acknowledged her insight with a slow nod and mulled it over. His mind circled what a careful approach would be most successful if they were the neurotic type. He can’t wrangle them for answers if they’re quick to flee. Considering the oviraptors were new to the isles, gathering proper food must be difficult if they would rather plant their own seeds than gather what already exists here.

A sly smile sparked to life on his face as he finally replied. “Scrawny as they must be, they must be the hungry sort. How about we share some of our rations? As a gift.”

Saskia blinked slow at him, but when he turned to walk down the road without another word, she rose and followed suit. With a smile like that, she knew it wasn’t a question he asked, but a plan he already put into motion.

The cityside may be a difficult hunting ground for some, but food wasn’t that hard to come by if you knew where to look. As they walked back to base, nothing but a roofed parking lot with bedding and decor put wherever between the rundown vehicles left there, they noticed the skittering footfalls of vermin and distant growls of strays amidst their kin. Critters that were already comfortably living between high walls and dirty gutters when humans ruled were only emboldened by their disappearance. Rats, pigeons and lost pests are a common sight. The parrots especially had a soft spot in Saskia’s heart.

They didn’t linger long at home. A few greeting nods, fleeting banter, a shuffle to the storage–a rusty pickup truck where leftover foods are haphazardly thrown into its bed–and the two were on their way again with meaty scraps in their claws. You couldn’t say they were quite as fresh, but the smell was still pristine and it tasted just as good.

It was a shot in the dark to offer meat, but that’s all Sarge knew how to provide. For all he gathered the Ovis were all about plants and gardening. Still, surely no one would pass up preserved pieces of deer in an environment where those usually don’t wander freely. He doubts they’ve ever tasted venison.

The moment they walked a few paces away from the rest of the pack milling about, Saskia took the lead as she watched out for those nimble strangers. Her pace was infuriatingly slow for Sergeant's long stride, but he swallowed his impatience whole and let her navigate the roundabouts and faded crossings.

Her calm, and smaller size, especially compared to Sarge, made her less conspicuous and more approachable than what he could offer. It worked out once before. Or maybe it was just the charm of her steady plush companion sitting behind her crest. Either way, first impressions mattered most. Slowing the momentum of her steps to a near crawl, not enough for a full stop, she did spot a familiar, strange shape, just two buildings over.

An Oviraptor, shockingly bald, in pleasant browns, white and blue leaned over a contained square of turf at the sidewalk, seemingly trying to dig into the hard dirt just to discover it’s far too shallow for any use. The lanky dino did remind Saskia vaguely of a fawn, only enforced by the way they froze the moment they locked eyes. They had vines painted on her scales, snaking around her neck, and pretty blue eyes. The scars on their left arm and shoulder surely told a story of wandering the island’s surface and unfriendly encounters, but Saskia wasn’t nosy enough to ask. Instead, she did what she did best and spoke serene and true as she approached.

“Hello. Are you hungry?” She spoke across the remaining distance, her voice barely lifting enough to reach.

Giving her a swift sideways glance, Sergeant stepped forward to elaborate. “You’re one of the newcomers, aren’t you? Thought you might appreciate something to eat.”

The Oviraptor radiated cautious energy, but seeing the pieces of meat, too much for her alone, coaxed her to eventually close the distance and hop up to them. It appeared she was waiting for an opportunity to have a well-earned break, and the search for something scavengable in the city was so far unsuccessful. 

Lahna, as she introduced herself, needed a moment to feel comfortable with two larger predators this close beside her, but they eventually sat down to eat together. With shared food this good and the interactions pleasant and lacking any aggression, the urge to disengage disappeared near completely.

Before Sarge could even aim any of his questions at her, Lahna started the important chatter all on her own accord. She talked of how she’s been rattled, chased and occasionally offered food by strangers, which only made her more conflicted. She never knows when to run and when to trust the surface-dweller’s gifts, but she’s happy that there are kind folks amidst the distrustful ones. It’s been a constant push-and-pull in either direction, especially since she doesn’t want to disappoint the court.

Frustratingly for him, any inquiry of where exactly she came from was shot down, dodged and avoided, no matter how careful he navigated the question. He needs to know how the strangers end up in the city and where the rest of them are hiding, but he had no choice but to relent and drop the topic. The girls eventually dominated the conversation with little nothings about favourite flowers and the weather. Well, Lahna did with little but honest input from Saskia.

Sergeant, for once, kept quiet, busy working his jaw on unasked questions, knowing they’ll remain unanswered if they were spilled. It would be so easy to put some pressure on this nimble stranger, but he stuck to the plan if not for Saskia’s sake. Befriend the newcomers, let them get smitten, and get information with time.

It’ll take time, and it’ll take patience.

(1442 words according to Google Docs)