The Behemoth Riders

Gush-radical is sitting on her chest when she wakes up. She sits up and he climbs up to her shoulder. Zara is conversing with the cyclists while seated a little distance away. Although she doesn't appear to be getting any better, at least she is speaking with the individuals who caused her friend's death—the same death Zara would have had if she hadn't kept slipping off, gradually acclimating to being separated from the Behemoths' touch.

Bibby gets up and approaches them, eager to hear what they have to say. Having determined that she and Gush-radical cannot depart without Zara, she believes she has little better to do. The horsemen create a circle, and they settle down next to Zara and start listening. Why she ever left them to join the river is what she's attempting to explain. She departed to locate her family again, which is the greatest explanation she can think of without offending these heartless, uncaring people. When asked why her family left her, she responds with the best response she can without offending them: "They left because they didn't like what I was doing, and I wouldn't stop."

The obvious inquiry, "What were you doing?" is then raised by a rider.

Zara now understands that she has been caught and that she cannot say anything sincere without disparaging them, their work, or their passions. If they were insulted, what might they do?

Then, according to Bibby, "She was killing herself slowly." Every rider in the circle lets out a gasp and looks at Zara with a mix of disbelief and sympathy. With her knees pressed to her chest and her eyes fixed on the floor, Zara appears to give up. Between them, there is silence. Then, when Bibby, Zara, and Gush-radical attempt to flee these stupid people, hopelessly driven insane by their love, a tremendous buzz envelops them in a sound so loud it feels like wading through liquid air. Their lives are now under the power of the Behemoths, not the other way around. They no longer sleep like humans do; the Behemoths are the only energy source for their riders. Rather, they take in the energy from the organisms and become more and more exhausted until their bodies fail. They fall because they lose consciousness and balance, even only briefly, giving their body the brief window of time between the fall and being lifted back to sleep, preventing them from dying.

The Onyx Orb's laughter may be heard behind Bibby and the others as they run through the forest. They slow down and relax after realizing that the horsemen are unable and unwilling to pursue them. Shortly after they take a seat, Bibby experiences her first drowsiness since being brought here by the Onyx Orb. It's not the first time she's slept, but it's the first time she's realized how important it is.

She falls asleep as a result of allowing the Orb's darkness to envelop her.

The sound of thrashing in the neighboring brush wakes Bibby. Gush-radical falls off her head when she sits up.

"Hey, man," murmurs the Gush-radical. "Just give me a few more minutes and I'll be all right."

However, Bibby stops giving him extra time. Rather, she brings him to Zara and rests him atop her head. They both leap to their feet and begin striking one another. The fact that Gush-radical is somehow her size again strikes Bibby as odd. "You two fight just like a brother and sister!" Bibby chastises them. "Should we go investigate that sound now? I was awakened by it, and I'm eager to learn what's causing it."

Zara and Gush-radical reluctantly put an end to their altercation and start walking with Bibby through the woodland in the direction of the sound. The sound grows louder as they move, until the falling and thrashing in the bushes seems to be directly in front of them. They discover that it is true after taking a few more steps: two enormous Flutterfuries, each the size of Bibby, are engaged in a furious battle in a clearing. Both are standing on four of its six legs, and each has a ripe banana in one of its two free hands. One has black and yellow patches on its wings, while the other has red and green markings. Since there are just two of them and they are acting much more aggressively than they would if they didn't want the other to die, it looks like they are engaged in a duel to the death, which should be easy to resolve.

The red-and-green Flutterfury had just been tossed by the yellow-and-black one, which had been flying, when Bibby and the others had first entered. However, they now appear to be battling in a manner akin to Renaissance fencing, but with bananas in place of foils. They dodge, lunge, and parry, and Bibby feels very lightheaded from their rapid four-legged actions.

With their left hands raised proudly, the two Flutterfuries circle one another while battling over the bananas in their right hands. They circle more quickly and more quickly, flashing and blocking, until they form a tornado of black, green, red, and yellow. The loose leaves and flowers that had covered the ground are blown away as the whirlwind swirls and spirals, moving over the open space. The ground is now bare wherever they go.

Bibby can occasionally spot a leg here and a wing there, but the two Flutterfuries quickly regain their speed. The clearing is clean of congestion as they pause and stand calmly in front of each other.

The Flutterfuries, who Bibby now realizes are even taller than Zara and with even larger wingspan, stand quietly and gaze at one another. After surveying the area, the red-and-green one tells the yellow-and-black one, "I would say that this clearing has been cleared of all the clearing-clutter that was in this particular clearing."

"Yes, I would agree," replys the black-and-yellow Flutterfury.

"Of course, I cleared the most out of this clearing," comments the red-and-green Flutterfury. "Which means that I win."

The black and yellow Flutterfury screams, "What?" and they're back to their battling, swirling, blending into a whirlwind, and raking the dust off the ground. They keep spinning until only hard-packed dirt remains.

"There," says the green-and-red Flutterfury to the other. "Now do I win?"

After a little pause, the black and yellow Flutterfury responds, "I guess so."

Disappointed with his loss, the yellow-and-black Flutterfury turns away. Until he is no longer visible, he wanders into the jungle with his head bent. The red-and-green Flutterfury only then turns to Gush-radical, Zara, and Bibby. He triumphantly appears in front of them after placing his bananas in strange sheaths that are fastened to his hips.

"What are you doing?" Bibby wonders after he has been standing in the same valiant position for a while. "What are you doing?" she asks again, as if it isn't noticing her.

While maintaining the stance, the Flutterfury appears to be observing them. He keeps them quiet. "I'm waiting for the glory to rain on me so that I might bask in it like a turtle."

Bibby is going to say that this is absurd, but Gush-radical keeps her mouth shut. "Wait and watch," he gives her instructions. "It's best to stay out until it's done." He then releases her mouth and returns to his seat on her shoulder, remaining silent. Bibby only knows that Gush-radical has returned to his normal size, but she is unable to pinpoint the exact moment. She reasoned that she might as well adjust to his fluctuating proportions at this time.

After a few more minutes of waiting, just as Bibby is about to speak, the Flutterfury is bathed in a dazzling white light. At least that's what it looks like at first. The light changes from white to a color that seems to slightly darken the black veins on the Flutterfury's wings while Bibby observes. Then it vanishes and the Flutterfury turns toward them. His eyes are as dark as the lips of the Onyx Orb. Other than that, he remains as upbeat as ever.

"Well, then," it continues, "who wanted to talk to me?"

Looking into the dark, gulping eyes, Bibby feels shy now. Gush-radical whispers encouragement to her, and she suddenly musters the bravery to inquire, "What just happened there? "With the glory?"

Even while the Flutterfury laughs with genuine joy, there's something about it that unnerves her. She then recalls that she is speaking to a gigantic Flutterfury, and she concludes that if she hadn't already thought it odd, then things must have really gone crazy. "Of course, I was enjoying myself. Really, that felt good. The Flutterfury, still standing on four of its six legs, remarks, "Very good." "I have to continue looking for more glory now. I've always enjoyed the sensation of greatness. I must have more.

"Hey, wait!" Zara called to the Flutterfury, and it would have fled. Could you assist us?

It pauses, pivots, and then returns to them on foot. "So, how may I assist you? You don't seem like the kind of person who would require assistance.

She says, "Well, we're going towards the mountains, but we don't have a way of climbing up, and it's a long way to get there anyway, so…"

"What, dear?" To meet Zara's eyes, the Flutterfury drops to one knee.

"Do you think you could give us a ride up?" Zara asks this powerful beast, shocking Bibby and even Gush-radical with her bravery.

The Flutterfury swiftly gets on its hind legs at this suggestion, leaps away from Zara, and then falls back to all six. He shouts things in an unfamiliar language while frantically shaking his head from side to side. Then he calms down and exclaims, "Obviously not. Do you believe that I am a blade of grass that you can walk on to go to your destination?

"But it would bring you a ton of glory," Zara says, shocking them once more with her bravery. Because she doesn't want to offend it by referring to it as a "mere" Flutterfury, she explains, "You would be the only one of your kind," "who will have given passage through the air to people like us."

After giving this some thought, the Flutterfury answers, "Why, yes, I do see what you mean." He gives it some more thought. "Yes, I do enjoy that! I will. When they begin to walk, it stops them with a leg after lying down on the ground to allow them to clamber onto its abdomen. All of a sudden, he appears really anxious and afraid. However, Bibby senses that he is more concerned about them than for himself from the look in those black, consuming eyes.

"What's wrong, man?" Says Gush-radical, Bibby's size again.

"Well… there is a war going on, if you couldn't tell from my earlier victory—you see, if there had been no war going on, I wouldn't have been so hard on him," he says. "I mean to warn you that there might be great danger to you if I provide you a ride to the mountains."

After that, Bibby feels as like she is in a hurry and everything is moving quickly around her. The forest's green. The Flutterfury's wings are red and green, and the entire thing is red and green. Lost. everywhere. Patches of green, blue everywhere, etc. Everywhere—gone. Everywhere. Blue blends with the Flutterfury's green and red wing pulse. Beautiful Flutterfury, soaking in the brilliance that was pouring down from the sky, soaking it up like a turtle, like black turtles, like black turtles, like black turtles. Then the world after touching anything of the Onyx Orb… of the Onyx Orb experiences a flash of yellow and an explosion of all colors in this universe of color-space encompassing, sound like music swallowing.

She's going down.

She should have reached the trees by now, but the Onyx Orb crashes past her and continues to plummet. She is once more passed by the Onyx Orb, which descends and then rises from beneath her. descending and then rising again and again. The Onyx Orb then exclaims, "You've found me again!" as it moves faster and faster, giving Bibby the impression that it is continuously dropping in front of her face. I had no doubt you wouldn't. Whatever. I'll check the clouds once again.

The Onyx Orb then disappears after falling past her one final time.