Empyrean Iris Story Collection

Animal Planet "Treats"

"Good hungry human, now drop the nice TV caster, drop it, I SAID DROP IT! Mendex hit the floor with an unceremonious thud. The human lowers its head looking very displeased, as it shuffles it's feet across the floor. The other humans look on in agreed displeasure eyeing Mendex as he scrambles across the floor and goes back to cowering behind his camera crew, where he would have preferred to be for the past few minutes, instead being snatched up by the ravenous looking humans, who are now baring their teeth at him hungrily.

"Keep that thing away from me!"

The doctor turns wagging his hand at the human, "bad, bad human. You bad naughty human, we do not eat guests!"

The human sticks it's mouth tentacle out in response, and even the doctor seems a bit nonplussed at that. The human appears to be very smug with itself.

Doctor Krill turns to look at the crew, "I should probably feed them before they get more aggressive, come on, they will be much more docile once they aren't hungry anymore."

Followed by a nervous group of TV casters, they make their way down the dark Tunnels of the human hive. It is more than a little creepy, the walls are lined in a thousand tubes and panels of metal. They wonder what sinister things could be carried inside those pipes.

What did the humans store in their dark places.

What did they hide in their dark places.

More strange animal noises up the hallway. The camera crew pulls back hiding behind the doctor who walks up with the humans. He pats them on occasion, and they circle around him and their alpha.

THey come to a halt just then looking up the hall.

Another group of humans has rounded the corner, and both groups stop.

"Oh no." Krill whispers.

"What do you mean oh no?" One of the crewmembers snaps camera shaking so badly in his hands that he almost tips it onto the floor. The footage will probably be unusable.

"Another, rival group of humans." He glances back at them, "They often fight each other for dominance. The smaller humans will try to gang up on the alpha for territory ."

"H-how do we know they want to do that."

"Oh, you see that big ugly one at the end of the hall, yeah, that one, he always tries to take territory from the alpha."

The camera shakily zooms in on the opposite end of the hallway. The human that stands there is just a bit shorter than the alpha with dark fur, and a few shades darker skin. He makes some sort of noise, and the alpha chirps back. They stand there for a second before the rival shakes himself and crouches low to the ground.

"Everyone RUN!" Krill shouts.

He didn't have to ask the crew twice, as they turn and book it off down the hallway. Behind them they can hear the ravening roaring of the fighting creatures and the clatter of feet on metal as they charg after each other.

They can hear the strange repetitive revving noise from behind, though, for the life of them, none can remember what it meant.

They roll down the halls nearly getting themselves lost when Krill yells.

"Hurry, this way!."

A few of them nearly skid into a wall before backtracking and rounding another corner following hurriedly after the doctor as the sound of fighting receded into the distance.

"Don't worry, we will be safe through here."

They break through the open door and....

And found themselves standing at the front of a room, surrounded on all sides by wide-eyed humans.