Drops of rain started started falling from the sky. Those drops quickly turned into a light drizzle. And the drizzle turned into a heavy rain
"It's raining!" Dennis said with the joyful and excited look of a child as he stopped to embrace the rain that was showering over him.
"What are you doing?! You're gonna get sick!" Maya shouted like a mother scolding her child.
"I don't care! This is my favourite weather!" Dennis shouted as he took off his shirt and shoved it into his pocket, trying to keep it as dry as possible.
"Why are you taking your shirt off?! Seriously, are you crazy?!"
"I don't want my shirt to get soaked okay! This is the only one I have and we still have a cold night to get through.
"What about you? Aren't you gonna take off that hoodie?"
"And put it where?"
"You can still go back to the cave"
"No, thanks. Besides, aren't you cold?"
"Of course I am, but I always play in the rain so I'm used to it"
"You're such a child!" Maya said as she resumed walking. Dennis took one last twirl before running after her.
"Hey! Wait for me!"
Dennis was now completely soaked from head to toe, so much so that his vision was also being tampered with by the rain. Maya's clothes were also wet, but it was much than Dennis since she decided to walk under the trees.
They walked along the forest some more. Splashing into puddles and almost slipping on roots and branches.
"Will you stop that!" Maya shouted at Dennis who was still jumping around in the puddle she had just passed.
"We have a monster to hunt and we're in the middle of a dangerous forest and yet you decide to use this opportunity to play around in the rain?!"
"Yes! Mom!" Dennis replied sarcastically.
Maya kicked a puddle and splashed Dennis with muddy water.
Dennis paused for a while, still trying to process what happened while Maya started laughing hysterically.
As payback, Dennis reached for the ground, made a ball of mud out of what he picked up, then threw it at Maya. It hit her square in the face.
"...How dare you!" She shouted after a brief pause. It was now Dennis's turn to laugh hysterically.
As payback, Maya also reached for the ground and made a ball of mud. Only this time, she took the mud and marched straight toward Dennis, who was still laughing, and shoved the mud ball as deep as she could into his mouth.
"Whyyyyyy?!"
Itwasonceagain Maya's turn to laugh as she strutted away in victory. Dennis tried to get one back by throwing another mud ball, this time in her hair, but he missed and ended up hitting the tree next to her.
"Ha! You missed!" Maya shouted before blowing a raspberry.
"Whatever" Dennis said in defeat before following after her.
They continued walking through the forest until...
"Whoa!" Dennis shouted as he quickly sidestepped away from the small creature that just emerged from the bushes.
It was a slimy little creature that moved pretty slowly, almost like a snail without its shell... but uglier. Dennis immediately grabbed his stick and stabbed through it. It was easy to stab through , and it was almost as if that thing was a balloon the way it popped and splattered its insides everywhere. Luckily, none of it landed on Dennis.
"Ew!" They both said after it popped.
They continued walking through the forest, their pace slowed down after hearing grumbling noises. The rain was still pouring and it was even worse that before. It was a whole rainstorm now.
Maya stopped once she found a tree that was able to give them shelter from the storm.
"I can't do this. I'm wet and cold, and we've been walking around here for such a long time!"
Dennis replied with a sigh, "women. Always complaining about the dumbest things"
"Do you want to eat another mud ball?!"
"No! Im sorry!" Dennis quickly replied, covering his mouth in case she really did try to feed him more. "Alright, let's rest here for while and then go"
"Aren't you gonna sit down?"
"And miss out on the rain storm happening right now?! No way! I've always wanted to play in a rainstorm!"
"Why do you even like this rain?!"
"Because, you know how in movies they always have those really cool fights scenes in the rain?"
"No"
"Well, they do. Everytime it rains, I like to imagine myself in one of them. Those fights are always epic!"
"Wow. You really are a child"
"Rude! I'm 18 you know!"
"Seriously?! You 18? As in, you're basically an adult?"
"Yeah. What about you?"
"Well, I'm still 17"
"Wow. I was right!"
"About what?"
"I always thought you were 17 years old. Though I will say, you're quite tall"
"No I'm not. You're just short" She said in a playful manner.
"I am not short!"
"Yes you are"
"I'm taller than you!"
"So?"
"Dude you're like, one of the tallest girls I've ever seen!"
"And just what type of girls have you been around for you to say that"
"My mom"
Hearing that answer, Maya burst out laughing. She laughed so hard that tears came rolling down her face.
"Your mom?! That's the only girl you've ever been around?!"
"Well, I didn't hang out with girls a lot back on earth okay!"
"Oh don't worry. I can see that"
"Keep that up and I'll give you another face mask!"
"Do that and I'll give you your dream fight scene! However, just know that you'll lose terribly!"
"Excuse me?! You really think you can beat me in a fight?!"
"Beat you? Oh no no no. I'd destroy you if we ever got in a fight!"
"No you would not!"
"Yes I will! I would beat the crap out of you!"
"Again. No. You. Won't."
"Wanna prove it?"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means that I'm challenging you to a fight, duh!"
"You do realize we still have to kill that giant centipede right?"
"Oh don't worry. I'll kill you, then I'll go and kill the centipede"
"That's if you make it past me alive!"
"Dennis, don't even, okay. Just accept that I'm stronger than you and let's get back to focusing on why we're here."
"...Fine. But just know that once all of this is done, you and I are fighting."
Maya cheerfully replied, "Okaaaay!"
Maya sighed before quietly chuckling to herself. She took off her hoodie and revealed her white tank top. She then wringed her hoodie and tied it to her waist, then grabbed two hair ties and began separating her hair into two parts, then used the hair ties to give herself a twin tailed hairstyle.
Dennis, who did not notice this whole process as he was still in the rain, finally looked towards her and 'whoah'
Maya paused for a moment before, "What are you staring at? Never seen a pretty girl before, mama's boy?"
"Stop calling me that!"
"Or what? You gonna tell your mom?"
"You know what, I just might!... Oh wait no!-"
Maya once again started laughing
Dennis grunted in embarrassment and decided to ignore her.
Then... they heard a noise.
"What was that?!" Maya shouted, immediately getting back off the ground.
"What?" Dennis asked, immediately sensing her alarm.
"I heard something" Maya explained before the sound was heard again. Louder than the first time.
"See!" She whispered.
"Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh" Dennis repeated, his heart rate skyrocketing with every passing second.
"Pass me the stick" Maya instructed with urgency.
"What? Why?"
"Because, what If it's the Chitinous Reaper?"
"Oh no" Dennis said again, bending his knees to the ground.
"All right, come on. Let's follow the sound and kill it." Maya said, her speech becoming faster and breathier the more she spoke.
Dennis gritted his teeth before trying to encourage himself, 'All right Dennis. Showtime.'
He got up and handed Maya the stick. But when she got it, she took a deep breath, closed her eyes.... and sprinted as fast as she could towards the direction of the sound. 'This girl is crazy!'
With no real choice, Dennis decided to follow after her. They both ran as fast as they could, slipping between trees and jumping over logs, stones and roots. It was still pouring heavily, and Dennis couldn't barely see, plus, he was worried that he might slip, but he kept running, because Maya was running faster, and she also had their only weapon with her.
Eventually, she stopped to take a breather behind a large tree trunk, and Dennis was able to catch up to her. They didn't run very far, but with the forces of nature in their way they felt like they had been running for a very long time.
"Why did you just run off like-!"
"Shhhhh!" Maya whispered, putting her finger near her lip.
"There it is"
'Oh crap!'
Dennis looked forward and saw his biggest nightmare...or nightmares.
Right there in the flesh was the Chitinous Reaper. But... there was also... another one.
Yes, there were two ChitinousReapers!
They had the same long worm like body, the same thick antennae, the same exoskeleton that looked like armour, the same sets of legs, and the same big, sharp claws hanging in front of their mouths.
And they were crawling about, right in front of the two humans.