Much Needed Company

Kyro frowns at the words. Is he insane? The Rajin man is beginning to believe so. Though there is a better question that simmers in Kyro's mind, "The parasite. You... absorbed it," he says, "...What was that?"

Cage rises to his feet, stumbling. It seems it'll take some time to get used to his disability, "Absorbed?" his brows scrunch, "...a parasite? What parasite?" Whatever the man means, Cage notices that his stomach no longer feels as if it is eating itself. Quite the opposite. He feels like a king after a feast. Lethargic, but greatly satisfied.

"The thing you fell with," Kyro responds.

"Oh..." Cage trails off as he stares up at the nine-foot man, "...You expect me to explain something I was asleep during?"

Kyro sighs, casually lifting the massive sword from the stone, "No," he turns and walks towards the campfire, "I suppose not."

Cage watches the blue man with careful eyes as he squats over a large leather bag, "You still haven't told me your name," he notes.

Kyro seems to ignore his words, at least until he stands again with black clothes in his hand. He turns his head and glances at Cage, turning back quickly. Kyro lifts his sword and cuts at the clothes, making some last-minute adjustments. The Rajin turns again and tosses a black leotard to Cage, the same as his own, "Kyro," he responds, "put that on. I'm not exactly fond of staring at naked men."

Cage catches the leotard with his only hand, nodding. The fabric is smooth under his pale fingers. Like silk, but thicker, as if it's been layered ten times over. Cage puts a leg through the neck hole of the leotard, and despite its shrunken state, the fabric stretches easily to fit his body. The lack of an arm makes dressing much more difficult, but Cage manages to get the leotard on after some effort.

The black leotard compresses against Cage's skin, as if molding itself to his shape. The right arm is cut at the elbow, and the remaining inches hang lazily from his shoulder. The left sleeve reaches a bit past his wrist, wrapping around the edge of his palm like a piece of tape. Tight, but unobstructing, "I didn't know there were clothes this convenient," Cage says, pinching the fabric covering his torso. He releases it, and it snaps back in place, the wrinkle of his pinch smoothing itself out almost instantly.

Kyro glances back at Cage, squatting over that bag again, "Orb-Spider silk. They have a nasty bite when alive. But a dead one, well their silk has always been great for clothing. That's what the women say at least," he says.

Cage nods, staring at the dancing flames, blue tips disappearing and rising again as if an extension of the actual fire. It crackles quietly, a rhythmic clicking sound. Sparks pop from the black shards occasionally, some shriveling as they produce a tiny flame that joins the rest. Cage stares for a moment, entranced by the strange shards as they work together to keep the fire going. He glances to the side, and notices Kyro is now sitting beside the fire, staring back with those grey eyes.

"Why help me?" Cage asks, black eyes returning to the flames.

Kyro hums, forehead scrunched at the question, "I only gave you clothes. I'm not sure that counts as helping," he says.

"It's something," Cage responds.

"I suppose so..." Kyro says, his words trailing off. He suddenly takes a deep breath, "…you're going to explain what happened with that Parasite. I'll keep you around until then."

Cage sighs, sitting beside the fire along with Kyro, "I already told you-"

"I know." Kyro cuts him off, "I..." he pauses, shaking his head. Imagine, a grizzled soldier like Kyro, who has seen countless battles and lived to tell the tale, feeling lonely. He thought he was used to loneliness, especially as a collector. But the presence of Cage, unknown and slightly disturbing as it is, brings some form of comfort to Kyro's mind. Before the black-eyed man had fallen, Kyro's thoughts had been getting increasingly dangerous.

Kyro sighs, his eyes hardening as they drift to Cage again, "Why are you on Kalar? There is no reason for you to be here," he asks.

"It's called Kalar? Huh..." Cage glances at Kyro, "...I'm not sure, Kyro. Really. It's complicated, and I don't expect you to understand, or even believe what I say," he remembers the light that brought him from that dark, stagnant place. He flew through some kind of tunnel, and for some reason, he felt... frustrated. A hazy memory, much like all the others.

Kyro scoffs, "You do not know me, or what I will believe," he presses further. Those grey eyes scrutinize Cage.

Cage has his own deep stare though, and he meets Kyro's gaze, "Real nosey, aren't you?" he says.

"Curious." Kyro corrects him, "There is a difference." Though that stare, those black eyes, they poke and prod at him. It's as if the man before him can see through Kyro and his tired mind. His secrets. His fears. His hopes. He imagines Cage is not aware of his own creeping gaze, just as he seems unaware of everything else.

Cage stares at Kyro for a moment, humming, "Fine." What can he do? He's alone, injured, and ignorant of the new world he finds himself in. Maybe, just maybe, this man is only curious. He decides to believe that thought. Skepticism tires him more than anything else, "I'm from Earth. And I have no idea how I got here."

"Impossible," Kyro scoffs, waving a dismissive hand through the air, "Earth disappeared long ago."

"What?" Cage's eyes widen. It can't be true. He doesn't understand much of the universe or the earth. But why would the planet just suddenly disappear? His home. His mother. His brother. No, it can't all be gone. That voice told him to find his brother. How would he find him if he's dead? "You're lying."

Kyro furrows his brows, "What would I gain from deception?" he asks.

Those black eyes continue to stare through the Rajin man. Searching for a fault, a lie in Kyro's words. Cage knows little of the man, or if he is a liar. But he does know that people lie, and sometimes, for no apparent reason, "How do you know?" Cage asks.

"It was written by Gira," Kyro responds.

"Gira?" Cage says with a wrinkled forehead, "Is he a god or something?"

"One step from it," Kyro says, "He traveled with a man named Tiren long ago, and together with eleven others, they saved this universe. He wrote about all of it, and there are copies of his writings on every planet. Well, those that are inhabited by actual people, that is."

"And earth is mentioned by this Gira person?" Cage asks.

Kyro sighs, "yes," he says, "If you don't believe me, then you can read Gira's records yourself. There are copies of his books on Raj, my home planet. You won't survive out here, so I'll take you back with me," he says.

Cage nods, "Okay, but how are we going to leave Kalar?"

"A boat," Kyro responds.

Cage gives a blank stare, "A boat."

"Yes, a boat."

"Don't worry about it for now. We just need to get back to Raj as soon as possible," Kyro responds. Though a sudden realization causes him to curse under his breath, "Blast it. I was hoping to avoid the boulder this time."

Cage hums, raising a brow as he looks at Kyro's dour expression, "What is it?" he asks.

Kyro shakes his head, staring at the flames with troubled eyes, "I'm here for the Rage stones. If I don't return with at least a bag full of them, then the punishment comes," he curses again, blue head dropping into his palm, "Blasted little stones. We should never have found them."

Cage raises a brow, eyes drifting to the dancing flames, "These Rage Stones... What do they look like?" he asks.

Kyro lifts his head, forehead wrinkled as he looks at Cage, "Little crystals. They're smooth and they glow red," he responds, voice reaching a somewhat hopeful tone, "Why? Don't tell me you found some."

Cage pauses, forcing the creeping smirk down, "Ah, I guess I won't tell you then," he says, words exaggerated as he looks away from Kyro. He fails to continue hiding the curl on his lips.

Silence crowds the dark ravine for a moment. Kyro chuckles under his breath, "A joker, aye?" he says, his mood lightened with the possibility that Cage presents, "Come on. Tell me if you found any. If you don't, well... maybe I'll just leave without you," he returns the exacerbated tone in full force.

Cage pokes his lip out, nodding slowly as the smirk grows. He points upward, "Well, say hypothetically, I woke up in a cave a few miles from here, and, hypothetically, before I left I saw maybe about twenty or thirty of those stones stuck in the ceiling," he says.

Kyro snickers, upgrading to a boisterous laugh not long after. His bellowing echos through the ravine, and even the flames beside them shrink at the sudden loud noise. Kyro calms after a moment, rising to his feet, "You're strange, Cage. Before you awoke, I even feared you," he extends a meaty hand towards Cage, "You've saved me from having to deal with torture though, so I find myself forced to favor you," Cage takes his hand, and also rises to his feet with the help.

Cage nods with furrowed brows, "You... feared me?" his black eyes look Kyro up and down, skimming over the Rajin man's imposing structure before craning his neck to look up and into his eyes, "I find that even harder to believe than what you said about Earth."

Kyro chuckles again, "I would say I was more curious than fearful. Though I've found that those two are closely related recently, at least for me," he turns, scooping up his sword and a large knapsack, "I believe this is something you should find out for yourself. But know this, I'm not the one that healed your arm." he says.

Cage cocks his head back, "What?" he asks. He raises his left hand to his shoulder, and through the fabric of the leotard, he can feel smooth skin where a bandage should be. It's as if his arm was never there.

Cage furrows his brows, "Huh…"