Chapter 2: 2. Three rats and a bar of soap.

There was something eerie about the forest. Sounds, with no source, trees, with no bark. Things slithered and crawled by me, there shapes mere shadows amongst the foliage. Even with the strength, the new strength of cultivation, flowing through me, I was afraid. Thoughts of being ambushed, or poisoned, and more crept into the cradle of my thoughts. 

It was quite nerve wracking. 

Still, I persisted and blind my walked forward. Careful not to step on anything sharp or trip on the roots and vines underfoot. 

My only company the entire walk so far, was me myself and my astronomical behind. It swayed and clapped and jiggled with all the ferocity of a mother bear. Which is to say I was still a little upset about being suddenly moved into the above 400 pounds weight range. It was strange, yet not entirely uncomfortable, and would take some getting used to. Especially with the way my thighs rubbed together. And the way my hips were so wide that they could be used as armrests. 

Then there was the matter of my chest. While it was definitely not as bad as my bottom half, it was still pretty big. 

Head sized melons weren't exactly common in my family. 

I badly wanted a bra, almost as badly as I wanted a skirt. Or at least some pants that weren't on the verge of exploding off me every time I moved. But, I managed. The issues of my wardrobe soon became background noise as I started paying more attention to my surroundings. 

Namely the creepy crawlies that I was almost certain were stalking me. They had at first followed me from afar, occasionally rustling about in the bushes. Now, however, they had drawn close. It seemed like I could hear them moving about every couple of seconds. A crunching leaf here, or a stick snapping there. I'd even seen vague outlines of them once or twice. 

They looked like rats. 

The only thing that kept me from screaming and running for safety was the possibility of encountering something even more terrifying. And the slightly less horrific possibility that they were potentially peaceful. So far they had done nothing but watch me from a distance. I might just be in their territory and they were just making sure that I left. 

It was definitely a possibility. One that I really hoped was the actual truth. 

Unfortunately, I wasn't that lucky. 

Right as I stepped onto a log that served as a makeshift bridge across a river they made their presence known. From the bushes came my stalkers. They leapt out all at once, revealing that they really did resemble rats. 

In total they were three of them, and they were each armed with an axe. They held the weapons above their head and surrounded me. Two in front, one in the back. 

"Where do you think you're going." The tallest of them hissed. He had a voice that fit his frame and promised trouble. "You've got to pay the toll if you wanna pass this bridge." 

"Yeah!" another one of them yipped. 

"Uh," I gulped. "I don't really have anything to pay you with." 

"Sure ya' do." Came the third one from behind. 

In a panic, I acted without thought and kicked the rat man behind me. Both he and I were caught off guard with how high I was able to lift my leg. It was almost unreal seeing a leg so thick move with such speed and agility, that even after my foot made contact with his face none of us moved. 

The other two just blankly stared. I blankly stared. 

The rat I just kicked, though, he fell backwards from the strength of my kick. And after a second more of silence we all seemed to start moving again. 

The first to react was the first rat who spoke. He let out a surprisingly tame battle cry and charged at me. I moved with just as much speed as before and practically slammed my hip into him. The action was one done on instinct rather than thought and I ended up shifting with so much force that he was actually thrown in the water below. 

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As I mentally took note of how strong -  wide, and big - I was the last standing rat dude tackled me. We landed in the log in a heap and promptly rolled off into the river. 

We were followed by another splash as I managed to grab my assailant arms. He struggled in my grasp, obviously weaker than me. But right as I was about to do something - I wasn't sure what - the third rat made his return. He grabbed me from behind, wrapping one around my neck and accidentally groping me with the other. 

I tilted my head forward, headbutting the rat who tackled me, then headbutted the rat holding me. A foreign curse escaped both of them. Then the rat I knocked into the river returned with a snarl. 

The three of them grabbed me. Two arms wrapped around each of my arms. A tail bound each of my legs, and one of the rat men got in my face. 

He laughed. 

Then he stopped laughing. 

Ahead of us the river led into a waterfall. The three rats instantly let go of me and tried to swim for safety. But it was too late. We all screamed as we poured out of the river and down the waterfall. 

A deluge of water blinded me for a moment, and then I heard and felt a splash. Seconds afterwards I resurfaced and swam back to land. A moment or two of peace passed before the rat men resurfaced as well. They swam towards me, a strange look in their eyes. 

When the finally got onto dry land I realized it was fear. 

"We-we're sorry Mam, we didn't know you were a cultivator." 

"Yeah, honest." 

"If you let us go we promise we'll never mess with you again." 

"Ever." 

Their apology came in short, hurried, bursts that I only barely made sense of. And a few questions rose from what little of it that I gathered. 

"Are... Are you guys not contestants?" 

The air seemed to still after I asked my question and the rat men stared at me. Then after a very brief silence they finally responded. 

"Contestants?" 

"Nevermind." I said hastily. Almost as soon as I spoke, however, a question came to the forefront of my mind. "But, uh, is there like a village or something nearby? I'm not from around here and, uh..." 

"Yes." The head rat said. A sort of eagerness in his voice, draped around a rat like smile. "We can give you directions to it, if you'd like. As payment for sparing our life." 

Despite him being a rat and having literally tried to kill me minutes prior, I decided to trust him. Mostly because the idea of there being anywhere were I could get new clothes was just too tempting to pass up. 

And after receiving said directions we went our separate ways. 

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