[Trade] Turbulent Waters

Life had been relatively kind to Maahes since his hatching. He'd found the remains of a city and made the second floor of the dilapidated building his home base for a time. The nearby woods had provided food and clean water, and as far as he could tell it was an ideal hunting grounds for a dinosaur such as himself. However, Maahes was growing bigger and bigger every day. The floor of his home groaned beneath every step he took, beginning to splinter and break from his weight. And the surrounding woods that he snuck through for his daily meals was growing sparse, picked clean by his hunts. As much as the young dinosaur did not want to admit, he had to move on and find somewhere new. Such an event takes planning, but Maahes did not have the patience for that and instead he set off right after breakfast. The few remaining animals in the once cozy little woods watched as his silhouette disappeared into the distance, hopeful that the growing dinosaur would not return.

 

Maahes walked and walked, and then he walked some more. To him, it felt like he'd been traveling for days instead of mere hours and his rumbling stomach reminded him of such a fact incessantly. Deciding to put off searching for a new location for a moment, he followed his twitching nostrils. The smell was...strange, but he found is fascinating. The air was humid and salty, tinged with an uncomfortableness that he could not describe. Slowly the grass turned to muck and mire, and he struggled to move in the mud. He bellowed and roared, ripping his hind legs up with each step as he hurriedly approached what appeared to be a lone patch of grass. It sunk the moment he stepped onto it, submerging his bottom half in water. Something he couldn't see passed against his leg and he yelped in surprise, kicking out at the offending sensation as he dug his face into the mud desperately trying to pull himself out. He struggled for so long that by the time he managed to free himself he was tangled in swamp grass and completely exhausted. Maahes forgot all about his rumbling stomach as he curled up in the muck, covered in mud from head to tail. For all intents and purposes, from a distance, he appeared like a very misshapen rock. The brave (and stupid) birds that landed on him while he napped were ignored, and he was even too tired to swat his tail at the bites of bugs.

 

Whatever this place was, he hated it.

 

A few hours passed and Maahes was eager to move on. He stretched his body and shook out his frills, mud cracking and falling from his scales as he did. The dried mud that remained was itchy and no amount of twisting and turning could soothe him. He looked around at some of the nearby trees, situated dangerously close to tempting patches of grass. Knowing the betrayal from the last one, he decided against using one of those trees to scratch himself. He wanted to get away from this horrible damp, stinky, itchy place as soon as he could. Maahes returned to the beaten path, opting not to follow his curious nose, heading away from the wetlands. Still tired, he kept his walk leisurely, opting to look around and admire all the sights.

 

He was relieved to find a tall oak tree with a wide and ridged trunk, perfect for scratching off as much as the remaining dried mud that he could. After much itching and scratching, Maahes finally had some relief. It was starting to get late and he was growing tired. He was already resigned to his fate of going to bed with an empty belly, but on tree was not enough to protect him overnight. In the distance, past a churning river, he could see the remains of another city. Surely he could find a building to rest in, after his morning ordeal, Maahes wanted a familiar comfort. He was already regretting leaving, but he was determined not to turn around.

 

With a little bit of pep in his step, despite his lowering eyelids, Maahes headed straight for the river. It seemed similar enough to the stream that wound it's way through his forest. He couldn't see anything inside it's churning waters, no fish and certainly not the bottom. He dropped his head and quickly drank his fill, ignoring the way the water sloshed up his nose as he did. 

 

And then he was off.

 

His first couple steps were fine as he found his footing on the bottom of the river. His unearned confidence swelled, and he took another and another. As he slowly approached the river's center, something touched his leg and he yelped; feeling as if he was back stuck in the wetlands. He once again struck out at the offender, which led to him losing his balance and crashing into the water. He disappeared beneath the surface, a thrashing dark shadow just below. He emerged, finally, with a gasping breath as he grabbed at anything he could. His short arms couldn't help him as the river began to drag him out and he watched in horror as the city slowly disappeared from view.

 

Maahes thrashed desperately, legs kicking and trying to find purchase on anything he could. Occasionally he could feel his claws drag across stone and dirt, but he could barely tell which was was up. He was tired, too tired to fight against the water and eventually he stopped thrashing, riding the horrible current wherever it would take him. It spit him out, finally, at the edge of the island and he opened his eyes, blinking up at the starry sky above his head. His chest heaved and he curled up right there on the beach, and closed his eyes to sleep.

 

The next morning he awoke, the salty sea air stinging his nose as he breathed in his first morning breaths. He was banged up, bruised, with several cuts across his grey and purple scales. But he was alive! Maahes learned the importance of rest, and not trusting unfamiliar waters. And he quickly turned inland, rather than brave the ocean for his breakfast.