The Laughing Swordsman

Uncomfortable squelching sounds rang out as Apollo and Layla walked through the toxic wasteland. Several of the dark green locust-like bugs scattered when they approached, seemingly afraid.

Apollo took a brief scan of his surroundings, noticing there were countless strange variations of living beings. The ones around him were quite small, perhaps the size of a puppy.

Their features were seemingly random, such as an extra head, or unusually long body part. However, as Apollo walked through, he found several reoccurrences of the same variation. Rather than some genetic mutation, it was more like they had evolved this way.

To survive in a place as barren as this.

Apollo noticed that a few mushrooms were growing around the place and that most of the small creatures were eating them. When he approached, they would flee quickly, making space for him.

A white mushroom with a yellow tint was revealed before him.

Apollo hunched over to pick it up. With a light tug, the mushroom came off, revealing some mycelium that looked like roots. Apollo turned the mushroom over, which had a small bite on it.

The mushroom felt slimy with the texture of a sponge. It would be rather unassuming if it weren't for the slight yellow discoloration and where it was growing.

Layla tilted her head to the side.

"Why is friend holding that?"

Apollo turned to Layla.

"It seems to be food, right?"

Layla pouted.

"But it doesn't look very tasty."

Apollo blinked a few times.

"Why so?"

Layla giggled.

"Just look around, friend!"

She spread her arms out and waved towards the small creatures.

"There are so many tasty things around us."

At first, Apollo couldn't understand what Layla was referring to. However, there were only so many things to eat within this wasteland. The mushrooms, and the small creatures.

Although there was dirt, that wasn't exactly the most edible.

However, the small creatures didn't look too appealing to eat as it looked like their skin had been peeled off. It was as though they came straight from a weird horror movie.

Apollo coughed.

"I'm sure we can find better things to eat elsewhere."

Layla's tail swayed enthusiastically.

"Does friend not believe me?"

Apollo's eyelid twitched.

"No, no I believe you."

He didn't believe her.

Layla pouted, but smiled soon after.

"Ah, I will show friend how tasty they are!"

Before Apollo could say anything more, Layla took off, barreling towards a creature that looked like a dog with two heads. That creature quickly realized what was happening and whimpered as it bolted off.

The two-headed dog was both fast and had a large amount of initial distance. Unfortunately, Layla was faster.

Far faster.

In a couple of seconds, she caught up and grabbed it by one of its necks. The two-headed dog immediately began to struggle violently, flailing its limbs violently and twisting its heads around.

Unfortunately, it was too late for it.

Layla skipped back happily, singing a tune to herself. Once she got next to Apollo, she extended her hand forth, bringing the struggling two-headed dog next to Apollo's face.

His eyebrow twitched.

It should be known Apollo had almost never eaten meat before leaving the village he grew up in. The only exception was when he was near death, but that was for survival more than anything else.

Apollo was presented with a still struggling animal that was not only deformed, but veiny pink skin. He took a step backward, unwilling to eat it for the sake of eating.

Layla pouted.

"But just look! It's very, very tasty!"

The two-headed dog had black beady eyes, some of which looked at Apollo desperately, asking for help. He waved his hand dismissively.

"Um... I would rather not eat that."

Layla puffed her cheeks up.

"Mmmm!"

She raised the two-headed dog up and shook it around.

"I will show friend how tasty it is!"

Without hesitation, she opened her mouth wide and...

Bit down on one of the two-headed dog's necks.

The respective head struggled for a few more seconds before falling listless, unable to move anymore. As for the other head, it began to struggle even more wildly, partially from fear and partially from pain.

Blood spurted out from the dog's neck and dripped down Layla's chin. She continued to munch happily, contrasting greatly with the gruesome scene in front of her.

Apollo blinked a few times, watching Layla eat with a bright smile.

Eventually, she lightly smacked her lips a few times. She had finished her mouthful.

Apollo rubbed his chin with his thumb and forefinger.

"Is it really tasty?"

Layla nodded eagerly.

"Yeah, try it!"

She stuck it out in front of Apollo once more, prompting him to stare at the struggling dog curiously.

Was it really tasty?

After a bit of hesitation, Apollo bit down on the remaining neck of the dog. It whimpered miserably, but it was soon cut off.

Apollo had bit off a rather large chunk, though Layla still ate more. The warm blood dripping down his chin felt a little strange, but surprisingly enough, it was actually pleasant to eat.

It tasted similar to a steak, but was far more tender. The blood which initially made Apollo feel disgusted was actually the best part of the whole experience, a strange blend of both saltiness and sweetness.

Before Apollo knew it, he had finished his bite.

Layla smiled proudly, like a kid that impressed their parent.

"Tasty, right friend?"

Apollo nodded.

"...Tasty."

Layla giggled.

"Does friend want to share the rest?"

Apollo shrugged.

"Sure."

With that, the two of them ate a good portion of the dog. Once they started to reach the bones, they no longer bothered so much.

Both Apollo and Layla were now covered with quite a lot of blood, mostly on their hands and face. Other than looking a little menacing, there was no real problem.

...Well, almost no real problems.

The smell of blood was very attractive to some things in the toxic wasteland.

Some things most would call predators.

A deep roar came from the distance, signaling the coming of something new.