Username:
alphatoros
Name:
Isilo - 'Beast' in Zulu.
Gender:
Female (She/Her)
Song:
Dirty Paws - Of Monsters and Men
Story:
alphatoros
Name:
Isilo - 'Beast' in Zulu.
Gender:
Female (She/Her)
Song:
Dirty Paws - Of Monsters and Men
Story:
Isilo hadn’t lived in the forest long. It was a nice place, and hadn’t taken her long to decide she wanted to live here. There were no humans, for one thing, to continuously ruin her home and her life. Nor was their ice or snow, a terribly cold environment that she used to inhabit. No, the forest was definitely her rightful place.
Her abode was hardly built, despite being here for a few weeks. A pile of sticks would be to put it kindly. Though it wasn’t pretty it kept her warm, and her bed of moss and leaves was as comfortable as any pile of snow ever could be. It was hers, and she was happy.
Because the home was barely built it was a surprise to Isilo when she heard tapping at the entrance. It was late morning, so obviously she wasn’t the only one awake, but she wasn’t acquainted with any creatures of the forest yet. Curiously she wandered to the entrance, pushing away the plank of wood that served as a door. It fell with a loud clunk, surprising the poor squirrel who awaited her on the other side. It chittered with displeasure, as if scolding her, then gestured for her to follow with a sense of urgency that returned as soon as it recovered from its fright.
Isilo cocked her head with confusion as the squirrel began bounding away. If she wasn’t careful she could easily get lost, though she supposed it wasn’t a bad thing to wander the forest. She had to learn to get around somehow. With a sense of purpose and concern she followed the squirrel as it hopped effortlessly through the forest, further and further away from her home.
The forest began to thin as Isilo followed her new companion, which she knew meant they were nearing the outskirts. Loud clangs and whirring was a constant background noise as they got closer to their destination. The familiar smell of smog and machinery filled her delicate nose, which she knew meant humans. The creatures she had moved to get away from, tarnishing her beautiful new place.
The squirrel stopped abruptly at a clearing and turned to look at Isilo. It began chittering once again, pointing at the large yellow clawed machine that stood intimidatingly in the empty space. She walked up next to her friend and crouched, watching. This seemed to please the squirrel, who climbed up onto her head to get a better vantage point.
She watched as the machine dug holes in the ground, removing stumps and digging up roots of trees. This was definitely not healthy for the forest. As she watched she heard movement behind her. Alarmed, she turned to see what it was and was shocked to see more forest creatures there, watching and waiting. Wolves, birds, squirrels, hares and even a few bears stood, like an army standing behind their commander, awaiting her opinion on how to fix this problem.
Isilo realised they had probably been waiting for someone to help them. She probably wasn’t the first. But there and then, she decided she would be the last – she would defeat the humans she had fled from once before. They would not take her home from her again.
She stood, the kindness in her eyes ebbed slowly away and was replaced by a strong determination. These creatures didn’t speak her language exactly, but they certainly understood her orders when she gave them. She ordered them to different positions, the smaller, quicker creatures would go in first to cause a distraction, then the stronger and more deadly would arrive to destroy the machinery and would give the humans such a fright that they would never return. It was a sound plan.
Isilo watched from the forest edge as the birds, hares and other small beasts ran in, jumping around workers legs and scratching at their helmets. The roar of the larger animals echoed as they followed suit, using claws and teeth to shred the petty hides of the machinery and their loud, booming throats to strike fear into the humans. Isilo revealed herself with the larger creatures, roaring, growling and kicking her way through the masses to reach the human standing far back, not shiny bright colours like the workers but in a suit. Seemingly their alpha.
The leapt before the suited alpha and roared, a challenge to fight for his position. He however didn’t interpret the challenge and quickly fled, running and screaming the whole way to escape the beasts clutches. The workers, seeing other people running, quickly followed suit. The clearing was empty of humans, but their stench remained. Isilo snorted with displeasure as they fled. Cowards. The animals went into a frenzy of noise, excitedly roaring and squawking with their victory.
They had won their forest back, but it was injured. The next few months she returned to plant saplings, nurturing and growing them to help them become as big as the trees around them. The other animals helped as much as they could, though they didn’t have opposable thumbs like Isilo did. Many times the humans returned, most likely for their machines. But the creatures were always ready and waiting, and the workers didn’t get past the tree line. The machines stayed within the forests embrace, a constant reminder of what humans could do, and more importantly, of the forests ferocity.
Her home was built and finished after the battle. Her squirrel friend, affectionately named Chitters, lived with her. The forest was peaceful under the eyes of the forest animals, and Isilo was proud she made it that way.
(936 words)
Art:
