Armorani

"SNAP!"

Andy Maverd groaned as he lay on his back with a tin branch beside him and leaves falling around him. He slowly opened his eyes to see the medium sized tree he had just fallen from and was thankful he hadn't broken anything, aside from his pride in his tree climbing skills.
"I think I'll go home now," he said and laid there for a few more moments before deciding to get up.
Dusting himself off, he looked around, hoping no one was around to have seen him, but as always, no one ever can this far into the woods. Why, most would be scared half to death to even step foot out of the city!
A small frown appeared on Andy's face as he disliked the thought of having to go back. Out here, he was free. A free that no city or anyone could give him. This land was supposedly dangerous, ever since some takeover by some weird man, but Andy didn't give a hoot about any of that stuff. He was as free as any 14 year old could get, and would treasure every moment of that.

Casually, and in silence, he walked through some bushes and between two trees to come to the edge of a small cliff that looked over a valley with no trees. The valley led to more of the forest and had a creek running through it on the left side. In the distance, over the tree tops, a small mountain range could be see. Andy looked up a bit and watched the afternoon sky as the breeze softly beat against his face and clothes. Slowly, he closed his eyes and listened...listened to the breeze rustling the leaves of the trees, and brush on the grass, or smack against the cliff below. No birds, no bugs, no other forms of life could be heard. That was....until a gentle rustling of a bush was heard.

This sudden interruption didn't frighten Andy. He knew that squirrels or some small creatures wandered this far too sometimes, but still, curiosity made him open his eyes and look over his right shoulder where the sound had come from. His pupils dilated and his eyes opened a bit more in shock at the eyes staring back at him. The eyes themselves were white with yellow irises and and oddly cat-like pupils. He couldn't make out anything else as the shrubbery and shade hid the owner of the eyes that locked on him with a look similar to that a predator would have while hunting its prey.
Andy opened his mouth to speak, but a hissing and growling sound started to emit from the creature behind those eyes, allowing him only a gasp of fear. He started to bring up his hands in surrender, but also took a step back. A pair of red ears with yellow inside them shot up and peeked out of the top of the bush. If they belonged to the creature, they were sure big ears! Or maybe just big to Andy. He knew what it was... He had been told of these creatures and that they were the reasons no one came out this far. Few had supposedly interacted with them and survived to tell quite wild tales. Right now, Andy hoped he would be one of them.

After a minute of staring at each other, the creature rose up, sending down Andy's spin. The creature stood about a foot taller than Andy and had a pointed head. It had red skin and black curving stripes originating from it's back. And down its back were two rows of six curving black spikes. Two features that stood out most was the armor plated chest and tail top, and the seven small spikes on the creature's shoulder. The muscles all over it's body were well formed and showed most on its legs and arms.
As the creature stepped closer, doing so with the silent stealth a cat has, Andy saw that this creature had medium long, thick claws on its feet, but had perfectly smooth fingers on its five fingered hand.
Until now, Andy hadn't realized how close the creature had gotten, able to hear it's soft breathing at it was but a couple of steps away.
"S-stay back!" Andy said, trying to sound intimidating, but coming out as a pitiful plea.
"Ama....Amora..." said the creature very softly in a lighter, slightly raspy voice. Andy's eyes widened as he took several steps back, only to feel a foot slip. He gasped, closed his eyes, and started to fall back as he had gotten a little too close to the edge.
"AHHH!!!" Andy shouted as he felt himself start to fall, but suddenly be lifted up by the neck of his shirt. When he opened his eyes, Andy saw the creature had not only caught him, but seemingly effortlessly lifted Andy a foot above himself with one hand.
"Y-y-you...you saved me?" Andy asked with tears in his eyes from having though he was going to die.
"Amora...Amorani," the creature replied back and set Andy on solid ground beside him. Andy just fell on his rear and looked up at the creature.
"What...a-are you?" he asked.
"Armorani," the creature replied and plopped down in front of Andy, "Armorani! Armorani!"
"A-armorani? Your name, huh? C-can you say anything else, Armorani?" Andy asked and sat up, a bit more relaxed. Armorani nodded and smiled, looking eager and rather adorable. Andy smiled a bit and gave a light chuckle.
"Then...can you tell me why...you saved me?" he asked, the smile turning to a more serious look. Armorani put a hand to his chin as he pondered, having to give some apparently serious thought to this.

"You," Armorani finally answered and pointed at Andy, "What..you?" Andy looked slightly confused and asked, "Andy?" Armorani shook his head and leaned forward, poking his finger against Andy's chest, making Andy lean back a bit.
"What...a-are....you?" Armorani asked and smiled as he leaned back to normal.
"I-I'm human. A human. There are many of us...how about you? Are there many of your kind?" Andy asked, rubbing his chest where Armorani poked. It hadn't hurt him, but it did feel weird and slightly uncomfortable to be touched by a new, intelligent creature he had just met. Armorani nodded several times and lifted his hands as he looked around.
"We...all...live here," Armorani said and looked back at Andy with a larger smile, slightly revealing his very sharp teeth. He was no doubt carnivorous, and that made Andy's heart skip a beat and skin pale a little. This...Armorani could easily beat him, outrun him, over take him, and devour him at any moment it chose to...so...what made it so friendly? Was it an act?
Andy looked at the forest to his left, then at the cliff edge to his right. He didn't seem to have many options. And as he looked back at Armorani's kind smile, he thought...perhaps he could trust this creature.

Suddenly, Armorani tilted his head up and sniffed at the air, his pupil slits narrowing very much.
"We...go...now" Armorani said as he looked back at Andy with a concerned look.
"Uh...why? The sun is still out," Andy asked, a slightly obvious tone of growing nervousness in his voice. But after that, he received no other reply. Before he could even get up or say something, Armorani had run off and out of sight and sound.
Chills ran up and down Andy's back as he stood up and noticed how dark things had suddenly gotten. The trees were still. The wind had hushed as if it had been suddenly turned off. The light of the full moon that had now replaced the missing sun scattered it's ominous glow on the trees, grass, and everything it's light touched. The water in the valley had become still and not a bird, bug, or breath could be heard. To Andy, the world had just been silenced.

"A-amorani?" Andy asked out loud, in a sort of whimper, as he began shaking and backing away from the cliffs edge. He backed into something and jumped forward before whipping around with wide, terrified eyes. To his great shock and fear, there was nothing behind him....but there HAD been.
"Armorani! Please stop! Whatever this is!" Andy shouted with some tears building in his eyes.
"You're friend isn't here to help you~" a hissing, light voice said as a large, white, and sharp fingered hand, grabbed Andy's shoulder and began squeezing it with a crushing force. Andy screamed in fear and pain, dropping to his knees as the hand suddenly let him go. As he curled up on the ground in pain, a bony, white, extremely sharp clawed Armorani foot stomped down by Andy's head in his view. He heard hissing and snarling and looked up with teared up eyes, seeing with a blurry vision that Armorani was attacking a similar beast but larger and with a bone white body and even more long, twisting and mangled spikes down it's back.He couldn't see it's face from the angle, but could make out it's thinner but large ears standing up like Armorani's. It seemed just like an Armorani yet not at all like one. But perhaps it was just his view, which soon changed as the larger creature threw Armorani off and onto Andy with a force that sent the two of them tumbling off the edge of the cliff.
Andy didn't even have the strength to scream as he and Armorani fell through the air, the pain numbing his senses. The creature had probably broken his shoulder, and as his eyes closed, he spoke in barely a whisper, "Armorani..."

And everything went black for quite a long while. He didn't dream. He didn't feel anything after that.


Until he felt a warm, wet, slightly slimy tongue brush his cheek again and again, waking him up. His eyes cracked open slowly and his body did not hold back from telling him how sore it was....all over.
"Gah....w-where...am I?" Andy asked as he forced himself to sit up from lying on his back, refraining from using his bad arm. Armorani lay beside him closely and nuzzled his neck before licking up it and his cheek.
"Bleh? Hey!!!" Andy said and scooted away from Armorani and tried whipping the weird saliva that stuck to his face and neck, "GA-ROSS!"
A whine sounded from Armorani that made Andy stop and instantly be filled with guilt. He had just saved his life by fending off that larger Armorani-like creature.
"I'm sorry...thank you..." Andy said and looked at Armorani's sweet, sad puppy eyed look he was giving. Andy sighed and scooted back over before hugging Armorani's neck and burying his face into the muscular bulk. Armorani's ears perked up and he looked shocked, but smiled and began purring.
"Thank you...for saving me. I don't know how we survived the fall...but thank you," Andy said and let go of Armorani's neck before sitting up and rubbing his hurt shoulder. Armorani sat up and crossed his legs.
"I caught you!" he said happily with a slight wag of his tail. Andy looked up at the cliff ledge easily thirty feet above them and wondered how he was able to catch him...and...he must be injured!
Andy quickly looked up and down Armorani's body to notice two gashes on his right side.
"You're hurt!" Andy said, though confused at to why there was no blood. Armorani looked at his side were the cuts were, then at Andy and said, "I'm...ok. You sleeping for about a day. Hungry?" Andy looked confused, angry, then finally sad as he laid back on his back slowly.
"Yeah...but...I need to get home....my mom is going to kill me when I get back," he groaned and put his hand over his face.
"You...be fine. She love you... All mothers love their children," Armorani said and looked up at the sky. Andy looked at Amorani as he removed his hand. This would be the perfect time to ask where he came from.
"Where's your family?" Andy asked as he forced himself to sit up again. He was once again hit with guilt as Armorani's ears fell to the side a bit and he looked at Andy with a slightly sad look.
"Many of my brothers....and sisters....are slaves," Armorani said and looked down.
"I'm sorry..." Andy said and stood up, though his legs wanted to collapse, "Why don't you come home with me? I don't think I can pass you off as a dog, but, hey...worth a shot."
Armorani perked up and jumped to his feet before leaning over and licking Andy's face like a dog would. Of course, Andy tried to fight against it, but had no chance.
"Ok! Ok! Let's get going!" Andy said and laughed a bit.


Andy was thankful it was night as he led Armorani into the town. The darkness helped hide Armorani, and most people were asleep by now. As they approached Andy's house, he though over and over of how he would explain to his mom that be brought home a "monster" and how she would take it. Every time it ended the same....he knew she'd faint.
"Well, Armorani...this is it. My home," Andy whispered and stopped at the front door. He reached for the handle and slowly and quietly turned it.
Armorani's ears pointed straight up and he cocked his head to the side as the door unfortunately couldn't be kept from creaking as Andy opened it.
"Sorry!" Andy whispered and tip-toed inside, gesturing with his free hand for Armorani to follow.