"Well I don't remember riding a sea-boa before, so I guess the answer is... maybe?"

Effortlessly, as if gliding over smooth sand, the creature turned toward the sea. "Worry not for Reginald, I will make sure he's safe... Not to mention he won't stay asleep for much longer now."
A few moments later, the blue titanboa swam into the sea.

Levi attempted to position himself so that he would not get wet. He may be adventurous, but he was still a cat. "How do you know how long he'll be out?"

Reginald woke up and sat up as if an invisible mechanism had been turned on. "YAY!!"
"He has a love for water," Otis said, smiling.
"Otis, do the slide! Do the slide! Pleeeease?" The young german shepherd asked with a big puppy grin.
"Your wish is my command." A moment later, the immense snake curved her slick surface so that her passengers could slide between her ridges from one crest to the other.
"WEEEE!!"

"ACK!" Levi exclaimed as he was taken off guard by this motion and slid down, nearly falling off. He regained his balance and said, "Unfortunately, I don't share his same sentiment towards the water." He proceeded to laugh nervously, rubbing the back of his neck with his paw as he said, "I'm fine with boats, I'm cool with climbing rocks above water because if I fall there, getting wet is the least of my worries, but this particular water transport may take some getting used to."

"Oh, don't worry," Otis said. "I make sure my passengers are offered a smooth ride. I am a guardian, I do not endanger anyone but the enemies." And with that, she arched her spires once again, much to Reginald's choice.

Levi was ready for it this time and was able to maintain his balance. "Hey, that is kinda fun."

"Otis, do the double special!" Reginald barked.
This time, the snake arched so that her passengers could do twice the experience along her body.

again, Levi was ready, but this time he dropped his cool demeanor to join Reg in a "Whee!" throwing his hands up.

It took half a minute for Shadowclaw to focus on the talking wolf and nearly as much to realize he handed him a bowl, though he wasn't able to comprehend what the canine said. It didn't take a genius to realize that the wolf wanted to help. Shadowclaw began to slowly rise into sitting position, knowing that any sudden moves might trigger either him falling unconscious or them taking it as a hostile act... or maybe both...
It took him almost another minute, but he managed to get into a stable sitting position with his legs crossed and tail wrapped around them. The feline slowly stretched his paws and took the bowl, inhaling the smell of the liquid inside. The smell was terrible and as he took a sip he realized the taste was bitter. His body wanted to reject the fluid, but Shadowclaw forced himself to stay calm as much as possible, while drinking slowly and carefully.

"And now...TOBOGA!!"
This time, Otis complied by coiling so that her body assumed a circular shape over which the two pets glided until they reached the tail tip.
---
"Are you feeling better?" the wolf asked, taking back the cup.

Lars eyes widened with terror as Diana seeped into the void and reached for him, communicating with him through her mind. He immediately understood despite the consequences he will face when he went back into his body. He reached out both his paws and clung onto Diana. He grimaced and clenched his teeth, preparing himself mentally to bear the excruciating pain.

Somehow Flint managed to find the elevator. He pushed the small silver button and waited. "Please, are you kidding me?' He growled, facing the seagull. "Their not giving me trust. All they gave me is a collar and a shackle to a ball and chain. They, think I'm a feral. They categorized me with pirates. They already made their opinion of me."

Flint crossed his arms and looked away from J-Li, trying to disguise any facial expression. "Believe me when I say there's no such thing as 'trust'. In my life I've learned there's only temporary partnerships." He said bitterly. "Once their done with you, they leave, and you've gotta fend for yourself. They don't trust me. All they wanna do is keep tabs on me cause they see me as a threat." With a soft 'Bing!' the elevator opened and Flint got in.

"You are a creature of great courage, Lars. Now resist, as your body tries to deny the fact that you are still clinging to it. Feel the touch of Athena, focus on her warmth as she heals you. Do not give up into the sweet tempation of oblivion before we are done. Prove yourself worth of your marking, young shaman."
---
J-Li seemed to think about that. "Hmm, so your best solution to the fact that people mistrust you is to act accordinglu to their prejudice... Heh, you know what? I like it! Let me see what you can do, young mortal. You're so exciting!"

A look of doubt and confusion crossed Flint's face. he shook his head. "W-wait, wait, thats not what I meant. I don't want to prove them right. I'm no a pirate. I'm not a crim-". He stopped before he could finish his sentence. Flint leaned against a wall and slowly sank to a sitting position. His hands were on his head, pulling on his headfur. The dog was quiet for a moment, before he slowly started to speak. "When... I left the room, I was sure I was making the right choice. They were just gonna lock me up in the end, right?"

He furrowed his brow and then took a deep breath. Whatever, he made his decision, and he would stick with it. Like he always has. things would sort itself out. He'll figure it out later. Flint stood up and walked over to the elevator controls and pressed the 'ground floor' button. "I don't know anymore..."

Tacitē trieste to ask what the shaman had meant, but found herself without the ability to speak. With a ruefull grin, she picked up her notepad and wrote, "Thank you so much." the ferret then turned to Virgil questioningly, "What should I do now? Is there anywhere else fun nearby? Somewhere that I can learn more about the island?" she wrote neatly

Shadowclaw nodded "Beaten, but better... had worse... I think.."

Lars' soul hovered over his body momentarily. He gave Diana a final glance in her loving eyes before descending back. As soon as his feet paws slipped into his physical form, his soul was instantly drawn back and secured within.

He felt that pain again, and he only made a few whimpering sounds as Athena healed his body. His mouth tasted of iron from all the blood which he had bled from the inside, and all his muscles where agonizing him from the effect of the exploding chip. Lars clenched his sharp teeth and balled his fists up as his senses started to heighten.

''Ugh.....ARGHHH.....there's so.....much......pain.......'' Lars muttered, really trying to hang in there.

Virgil laughed. "Oh, dear! at this pace, you'll end up wearing out the whole island before the day ends! Come, you need to restore some energy." The lycaon led his guest toward a stand where a female was selling various kind of bread. he took a loaf of brown bread and broke it in two. The warm food gave out a smell of herbs and spices. "Local recipe," he said handling a half to Tacite. "Try it."
---

"Where are you from? What's your name?"
---

"Because your body is trying to tell you it's dead, to reject you. Now--"
At that moment, another presence made itself visible into Lars' field of vision.
A...feline. A big, hulking golden-furred specimen of a male, wearing a sort of tribal gear and body paint. He regarded Lars with solemn golden eyes, not speaking a word.
A presence that had the effect of shocking Diana into a silence, even if she kept holding the spiritual paw to hers...

[quote="valerio"]
Shadowclaw shook his head and tried to remember, yet nothing came in his mind, as if he had no past, only a few scattered glimpses of his emotions...
"I... I can't remember..." The feline put a paw on his forehead "All I know is that I woke up here as the sun was just rising... and as far as my necklace tells me - I am Shadowclaw."

The wolves looked at each other. If he weren't a cat, he could make a good meal. "My name is Gahr. These are my siblings. You are in our village. Now rest, and try to remember something about yourself, so that you can go back where you belong."

Levi continued to enjoy himself just as much as Reginald did. He loved new experiences, and riding a snake like a slide in the ocean was about as new as you could get.

"Thanks, Gahr." Shadowclaw replied, as he slowly began to stood up "But I wanna ask you something - where exactly am I?"

Otis resumed her course, curving back towards the shore. "I guess you had enough fun, boys."
"Awww!" Reginald lowered his ears. "Not even a dive?"
"No, unless our guest is in for a shock. So, now..." at that moment, something weird happened.
The theme music from 'Jaws' started playing from behind them!
---
Again that careful exchange of glances. "We're at our village, by the Green Ring forest."

Lars could only stare motionlessly at this glorious hulking figure who happened to be twice the size of his own towering stature. His bloody jaws fell agape in awe of this majestic male feline with his orbs and fur of gold. He wished he could talk but the only thing in his mind was the pain which gripped his senses so much. He only managed to move his brown irises to his face and make a few sounds of desperation, trying to ask him for help.

Or could it be his demise?

"Live," said the spectral figure, his voice like the sound of a distant thunder, as he bent over and touched Lars' chest.
A moment later, it was over and a healed body and its soul were reunited.

It was at that moment Lars opened his eyes wide and quickly sat up from his deathly posture, using a paw to clutch his chest, breathing in and out heavily. But he noticed that the airways in his respiratory system felt much more smoother as he inhaled and exhaled, and suddenly the feeling of having a chip implanted in his chest was gone!

''I...I'm alive...'' Lars said, looking at both his mates. He still had a paw to his chest, feeling his strong heartbeat and exhaling the pleasant air with a newer sense of smell. His enormous lungs sung with joy as they took in every single breath that he inhaled. His muscles rejoiced after being plagued by a chip which deteriorated his core strength.

''But...wh...what was that? Did you see him? Him who healed me??'' Lars asked with a hungry curiosity in his tone. ''You saw him too right??'' Lars said, placing both his paws on Diana and looking at her.

The two sisters looked at each other. they were clearly more stunned than him by that development...
But the questions had to wait, for now. E.R. was on Lars, looking in disbelief at the GSD. "You OK? Man, I believed you had bought it with all the foundations!" And then the others too were gathering around the trio, asking questions about his health...

''I...yeah... but I'm ok, and I seriously don't know what went on...'' Lars said, answering E.R's query. He turned the the rest of the crowd who were enthusiastically asking the big GSD the same thing. He put out his two paws and asked them to settle down. ''Woah okay guys. After the energy chip implanted in my chest exploded, my soul was trapped in a dark void, and Diana pulled me back out into my body, where I experienced the pain. I was suffering until this big....feline with golden fur and eyes approached me with this solemn look. The next thing I knew, he touched my chest and I came back here, fully healed! I really don't know who he was....somebody like Shaman Yago I guess....but I'm glad to be alive nevertheless...'' he told them.

The tattoo on his chest and arms had glowed a brilliant blue momentarily after his abrupt awakening, signifying the completion of his health being restored to full. He lifted his arms to his eyes and stared at the light fading back into the lines on his limbs.

He made a mental note to contact Shaman Yago in the spirit world to ask for more details later.

"Yeah, I'm good with not getting wet... wait what's that sound?"

Shadowclaw shook his head "Doesn't ring a bell... yet..."
Suddenly, he felt a strong headache, causing him to fall on his knees, growling in pain, but through the painful pulses, he heard a quiet whisper
["Listen to my warning, mortal! Be wary of your present company... they might try to cause you harm, if you're not careful."]

Tacitē giggled soundlessly as she followed Virgil, "Thank you for the compliment." she wrote. The ferret took the bread and gave it a tentative sniff, then bit into the savory bread. Her eyes lit up and her mouth watered as she took another bite. Tacitē held the bread between her teach so that she may write, "Wow! This is delicious! Much better than the food that they give out at the labs." she smiled and held up the pad

As if that question had been a signal, a telltale triangular fin emerged from the water, then a second, and then a third, as they started circling the titanboa. And the music got into its crescendo...
---

All the wolves left the hut, except the one with the bowl.
"Worry not, stranger. You are safe. Just relax and take your time. I will be watching over you." This said, Gahr joined a heavily scarred male as sentinel to the door.
---

"Uh? I can't imagine humans using bland foods, since they use local resources. What do the miscreants feed you, lady?"

Tacitē took another surprisingly large bite out of the bread, "Well, the humans get to have really nice food, but we animals get dry kibbles. Wet food on holidays." she finished her bread, "It's no good, the food they give us. They say it meets our every nutritional need, sadly they did not take into account personal tastes." Tacitē made a gesture as if wiping away a tear

"Oh." Virgil imagined she lived in an environment that didn't allow time for being taste-friendly. "Well, lady, in this case you can be guest by my humble hut whenever you want to stimulate your taste buds. In fact, why not come with me for lunch?"

Levi was getting scared. "I really hope those aren't what i think they are," he said as he reached to his bag of kunai, just in case.

Reginald had put himself down in a pouncing position, his tail as erect as a cat's and his eyes shining with excitement...and a moment later he threw himself into the water, in the direction of a fin!
A moment later, bubbles burst into the surface...
---
"Ambassador!" said a warrior from the threshold of Balkan's hut. "The shamans require your presence regarding the arrangements to dispose of our former leader's remains."

The young wolf may have interrupted their private time, but Balkan couldn't blame him - he was barely of age to join the warriors and he was bound to be sent on errands such as this, yet still in his words the wolf made a big mistake.
The half-wolf let go of Charlie and kissed her forehead "Ah haf'ta take care of this, you just stay here." he smiled "I'll be as soon as possible."
Balkan walked over to the warrior "Let's go, young warrior, but mind that your words show no respect towards the old Chieftain Fen'rir! I would suggest you remember that title, cause he wears it even in death!" the half-breed said in a calm, yet commanding tone in the wolf tongue.

The warrior didn't even care to look at Balkan as he said, "He is dead, he is chieftain no more. Now he is going to join his ancestors in the sacred duty of protecting our borders, while his bones will become part of our village and his flesh part of of our bodies. Giving rank to a corpse is such a...human thing."

"I wasn't talking about the body" Balkan shook his head "What I mean is to respect the being, the essence - the spirit." Balkan didn't even try to look at the young warrior "You don't call your ancestors just 'spirit', do you?"