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Iskaria: The Big Green	By : Collip99 Category: +S through Z > Thundercats Views: 3510 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own the ThunderCats or any character or events associated with it. I do not own or make any money from the ThunderCats or from this fiction

Chapter List
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“OK, we’re down…must’ve found one side sand and one side rock…a little bump…”
“Little? I thought we’d crashed!” Elan snorted.
“Oh well, excuse me! That counted as a perfect landing given the circumstances.” He sighed “We have an hour of good daylight, I suggest we camp here for the night…”
“You? Camp? Shouldn’t you be getting back?”
“No thanks…I’m tired and I do not want to fly through heavy weather and in the dark…”
“OK, suit yourself, but I didn’t bring supplies for you too…” he replied matter-of-factly.
“Very well…I have a days worth of supplies, I'll have those…who knows, maybe we could catch some fish in this lake?”
“Catch fish? Do I look like a fisherman?” he answered.
“Well…I mean, just drop a line in and you get fresh food, right?”
“Jungle food…probably disease ridden…” he snorted.
“Wait…you don’t eat anything from your expeditions?”
“Of course not! I bring my own food. I trust my own food, not whatever lives out there…”
Glaudus raised his eyebrows. “Oh, so…what is your plan if something goes wrong?” he asked.
“Nothing will go wrong. I spent the whole night checking all my equipment several times. It will not go wrong…” he spoke confidently.
“OK, so your equipment is perfect, the jungle is not…anything could happen out there and you’re an awful long way from rescue…”
“I don’t much care for your attitude. This mission is one built on success, not that kind of failure talk…”
“Sorry…just saying…this is a plentiful place and you’ll be living off…dried beef…” he inspected a plastic packet.
“Suits me just fine…nutritionally balanced and optimised for my line of work…” he countered.
“Like I said…just saying. Let’s disembark and get you unloaded…” he opened the hatch. A hot, humid air swept in.
“Did you pack a portable aircon by any chance? It’s going to get hot here for you…”
Elan shrugged. “I’m used to the heat…” he started unpacking his cases and bags. And so the pair continued. After forty minutes the rudimentary camp was set between the copter and the treeline. The sun sank towards the horizon, mist rose of the lake and the crepuscular sky was full of strange hoots, howls and buzzes from their much stranger owners.
“Get that fire started, maybe the smoke will drive the mozzies away….bloody things…” Glaudus waved and swatted at his unseen assailants.
“I’ve already layered up with repellent, but sure…a smoky fire will do the trick…” he started a good sized fire and added some greenery to it. The white plume of thick smoke rose into the air and into the trees. The multitude of flying bugs dispersed at this objectionable, smoky, invader. They would bide their time and attack later, as always. Elan sat eating his dried meat and some nuts whilst Glaudus impaled a decent sized fish onto a green stick and propped it up over the fire.
“There’ll be plenty to share…”
“No thanks.”
“You sure, big fish, lovely clean lake.”
“Like I said, how the devil can you know that thing isn’t crammed to the gills with toxins?”
“Well…erm…it looks fine…like a fat trout.”
“Fat with poisonous glands, I dare say.”
“Jeez, aren’t you the gloomy Gus?” Glaudus snorted
“Look around…as you keep reminding me, we’re in the Big Green, the wilderness, a long way home blah, blah, blah…Too far to be taking stupid risks!”
“Risks? Like capturing a big cat?” he sniped.
Elan was, momentarily, speechless.
“C-Calculated risk…mitigated by excellent equipment!”
“Yeah…What’s riskier? Capturing one of them, even with ‘excellent’ equipment…or eating a fish?!” he shook his head.
“I know what I’m doing…I’ve done it before!”
“Here? This far out?”
“Well…No…Last time I did this was on Pequorel.”
“Pequorel? Do they even have wilderness there anymore?”
“It’s no walk in the park, thank you very much. Still plenty of wildlife to hunt or capture.”
“OK, then what brought you to Iskaria? Don’t tell me…reputation? All those big stories of big money and big opportunity?”
“There are certain stories, I have to admit…” he nodded without looking up.
“Stories or no stories, these are no pussy cats we’re talking about! These are the stuff of legends, literally. These are their forests and you expect to stroll into their back yard and bag one? Seriously?”
“Let me tell you something. I’ve been in the game for twenty years! This moment has been twenty long, dangerous years in the making and you think I’m sitting here like a greenhorn, with my spud gun and ambitious dreams?? You insult me!”
“Frankly, I’d rather you were offended than dead…but I’m just saying.” He held his hands out passively
“Well thanks. Duly noted. I’m here to complete a mission. My reward will be great as are your fees…”
“Hmm…”
“What? You think I’m still not paying enough?”
“It’s not that...but where do you draw that line…Where money doesn’t compensate for the risk of death?”
“I haven’t crossed that line yet, in fact, cannot even see it on the horizon!” he smirked.
“Maybe because the line is obscured by bloody great trees and loads of them at that…”
“OK, you’re the expert…What do you know about the Big Green? Apart from fairytales, that is…”
“I know there is plenty on which to base the ‘fairytales’. Yes, there are cats here, big, big cats...”
“Savages?”
“Depends on your point of view! They live all their lives here in the forest; never live in towns and cities. That point alone could make them very intelligent if you ask me…”
“So they won’t understand technology? Good!” Elan nodded brightly. “Advantage humans!”
“They don’t know tech and you don’t know the lore of the forest…I’d call that a score draw, personally…”
“I know forest lore!” he replied indignantly.
“On Pequorel, maybe…that doesn’t count!”
“Trees are trees!”
“No! They’re not! Each forest is different and look at the size of this one!! It cannot simply be regarded as one big forest. It’s broken into tribes, as far as the natives are concerned…each of there lore will be different. Besides, whatever lore it is…they don’t like trespassers, especially human ones. Given your mission, they have every right to not want the hairless monkeys in their patch!”
“Oh where the fuck do you get off?? Give you enough gold and you bring me to their doorstep…so feel free to get off the moral high ground whenever you like, it doesn’t suit you!”
Now it was Glaudus’ turn to remain silent.
“Exactly…you’re not really any better than me in that respect. You make a good enough living exploiting the forests as well you know!!” he spat.
“I have my own conscious to deal with…in my own way, so no point lecturing me! True enough, I facilitate damaging this ecosystem…but I don’t kill things, not deliberately. I couldn’t live with myself if I did that…let alone break bread with the cats back in town…”
“Oh yes, the domestics. How do they view the savages?”
Glaudus sighed. “They’re not savages…anyway. Some view them as ancestors, some as demi-gods…others as pests and yes, some probably even do think they’re drum beating savages!”
“They’re the smart ones then…You ever seen one?”
“One what?”
“Local cat…I mean, local to these parts.”

“No…I’m a fly in-fly out Joe…this is one of the longest times I’ve kept my feet in the soil…So tell me; I saw the manacles and chains, I also say the knives…Is it living prey or skins?”
“Depends on my luck…”
“Luck? Thought it was down to skill and equipment!”
“Some things are beyond my control. When I used sedative darts I have to guess the dose. Occasionally I get it wrong, in other words, too much. Living prey, captives, they’re worth about five times the price. If my mark dies, well, not a total loss. I know plenty of women who enjoy wearing exotic skins.”
Glaudus considered this for a moment. “How would you feel about being worn by your foe, or, a money paying foe? Seems rather grisly when you consider it.”
“I try not to consider it at all. You wouldn’t catch me wearing skins; doesn’t stop the trade though.”
“No. I suppose not!” Glaudus shrugged. He poked at his fish, deciding it was still underdone.
“I'll be gone before first light, I’m guessing you sky-jockeys needs at least some sun in the sky…”
“Yes. I'll do my pre-flights and then head back. At least there shouldn’t be the convective storms on the way back. A smoother ride. When do you want collecting?”
“Well, I’ve thought on this. Make it one week, back here. I’ve stored this beach into the GPS.”
“A week? That’s an awful long time here in the unknown.”
“It’ll fly past for me I bet…”
“Will your food last long enough?”
“Sure. I ration myself. Besides, the heat and humidity will knock my appetite anyway. I'll set up base camp and then the hunting will be travelling light, returning to base every night, or even every two nights, depending on how well the hunt goes.”
Glaudus chuckled.
“What’s so funny old-timer?”
“Just trying to picture you roughing in the forest at night, far from your luxuries!”
“I resent that. Need I remind you that I’m an expert. OK, OK, not this forest, but awfully similar jungle/forest/woods and copses! So try really hard to not be so critical. I could outlast you in the forest. You’re old, overweight and probably delicious to the locals.”
“Hey!! There’s no need for that. I can cope fine!!”
“Really?” Elan queried.
“Yes. Why do you doubt that?”
“Your fish looks black!”
“What? Eh? Oh crap!!” he removed the stick and blew the smoke from the skin. “Only charred on the outside…” he removed the parchment-like skin and ate some of the steaming, pale flesh. “Oh this is delicious, but I won’t insult you by sharing!”
“Don’t worry…this jerky is tasty, long-lasting and delicious also…” he bit of a hunk and chewed, rather laboriously.
“Mmm…looks wonderful to me!” he chuckled in reply, much to the chagrin of Elan.
“So…someone told me that your name is Midas Elan…Who had the sense of humour to called you Midas?” Glaudus asked.
“As it happens, Midas is not my birth name…I was given that to me many years ago…they said I turned to gold anything I hunted…so, it was based on the ancient

myth of King Midas. Besides” he chuckled. “That was preferable to the name my parents really did lumber me with…Elan”
Glaudus stopped eating and thought about this for quite some time, as his travel companion ate.
“So…your name is…Elan Elan??”
“Correct.”
“Crap…Yeah, Midas isn’t that bad then, really…Elan Elan? What were they thinking?
“I assuming they thought I would suffer with a poor memory. Maybe because we lived in a culture where boys were called by their last name so my beatnik parents thought it would be ‘so cool’ to have authority call me by my ‘first name’.” he rolled his eyes.
“It’s an award winner!” Glaudus smiled.
“..and your first name is?”
“Mine? Travian.”
“Travian Glaudus? Big fans of the Roman Empire, huh?”
“The same name as my father and grandfather, gods rest their souls…”
“Oh…original…” he replied dryly. “Well…I’m hitting the sack. Long day tomorrow!” he yawned.
“I'll sleep in the copter? You want to?”
“No. I have a polyprop bivouac…that will be better…” he stood and unpacked his shelter/tent for the night. He then rolled his sleeping sack inside.
“Good night then…” he crawled in and zippered himself inside.
“Yeah…sleep well, town boy…” he chuckled. He took a piss against a nearby tree and then clambered inside his copter and closed the door from mozzie attack.
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Iskaria: The Big Green