"You can call me Hawke. Just Hawke."
"Hok."
It came out instantly, easily. The two complicated syllables became one, simple, direct. Her eyes lit up as if she had discovered fire.
"Hok. Hok!"
And she began to repeat it, like a child who had just learned a new word. A wide smile appeared on her face, showing white, aligned teeth, surprisingly well cared for for someone who lived in a world without dentists.
"Hok! Hok! Hok!"
Each repetition came with more confidence, more joy. She even jumped a little, her enormous breasts and everything else she had there swaying with the movement in a hypnotic rhythm that Hawke had to make a conscious effort to ignore.
'That's kind of adorable.'
Hawke smiled back, shaking his head. At least basic communication was working. Better than working, actually; the system seemed to have solved all the translation problems at once.
Kaira finally stopped repeating his name and made that same gesture, pointing to herself.
"Kaira."
Then she pointed to him, the smile still on her face.
"Hok."
'Great. She understands perfectly. And she seems to have a good variety of words in her language. Communication won't be a problem, at least. The system does that right.'
Hawke looked around the place. The hairy man was still knocked out there, breathing heavily but steadily. His chest rose and fell in a regular rhythm, his eyes closed, his mouth slightly open. He wasn't going to wake up anytime soon; that blow had been strong enough to leave anyone unconscious for hours.
But eventually he would wake up.
And when he woke up, he would probably be furious. With a headache, with his pride wounded, wanting revenge. These kinds of people didn't easily forget a humiliation like that.
'I don't want to be around when that happens.'
He looked back at Kaira. She was watching him attentively, waiting. Her amber eyes didn't leave his face, as if she were noticing every expression, every movement. Clearly waiting for him to ask the next question or make the next decision.
"Okay. Let's continue."
He pointed at her, then at himself. Then he made a broad gesture with both hands, as if encompassing more people. More people.
"Are there more? More humans?" Hawke wasn't sure if he had pronounced the word 'humans' correctly.
The word "humans" clearly didn't make sense to her. Her head tilted again, confused, her eyes narrowing in that "I don't understand" expression that he was already beginning to recognize.
He tried another way. He pointed at her. Then at himself. Then he made the gesture again, more emphatically, his arms opening in an arc that was meant to signify "many."
"More like us? More people? More persons?"
This time, she understood. Her eyes widened; literally, her pupils dilated, and she nodded vigorously, her head rising and falling in an almost exaggerated movement. Yes! Yes, there were more! She pointed in a direction in the forest, a patch of dense vegetation between two colossal trees, then motioned for him to follow her. Her hand moved in a clear "come" gesture, accompanied by a sound.
"HOK. Come. Come with me."
'Other people. There are other people here. A community? A tribe?'
The realization made Hawke happy. Happier than he expected to be. Until that moment, he hadn't paid much attention to the weight of loneliness; he was too busy running from dinosaurs and trying to survive. But now, with the possibility of finding other humans, a feeling of relief filled his chest.
The idea was comforting and frightening at the same time. Comforting because it meant he wasn't alone, that other humans were surviving in this crazy world, that maybe he could learn from them, share knowledge, build something. Frightening because… well, the last human he had seen was trying to drag Kaira by the hair and probably do worse things afterward.
How friendly would the others be? Would they all be like that brute? Or were there decent people around here? Tribes could be welcoming or hostile, depending on a thousand factors. And he was a stranger, an outsider, someone who appeared out of nowhere wearing only leaves tied around his waist.
He looked at the club lying on the ground. Black as onyx, the dense, heavy wood. It would be a good idea to keep it close, considering the others were dangerous. A weapon meant defense. Defense meant a chance of survival.
'I'm going to find more people. People I don't know. In a world where violence seems to be the norm. It would be prudent for me to be armed.'
He bent down and picked up the club again. The wood was rough against the palm of his hand, but the weight was comforting. It gave a feeling of control, of power, even if it was illusory.
If things went wrong with this tribe or group or whatever it was, he would need every advantage possible.
'I just hope they're not all hostile.'
Kaira didn't seem to mind him picking up the weapon. She looked at the club, then at his face, and just nodded as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Of course, he would want a weapon. Who wouldn't? She just kept gesturing for him to follow, already starting to walk in the direction he had pointed, his bare feet finding invisible paths through the vegetation.
Hawke took one last look at the knocked-out brute. Still breathing. Still alive.
'I'll borrow it,' he thought, waving the club slightly toward the fallen man. 'An unconscious man won't make good use of it.'
He followed Kaira through the forest.
She moved with surprising confidence among the roots and giant ferns. She knew the way clearly; each step was cautious, each detour instinctive. She stepped in the right places, avoided the leaves that hid holes, and dodged obstacles without even looking. Accustomed to that environment. Born and raised there, probably.
Hawke tried to keep up, the heavy club swinging in his right hand. His legs still ached from running, jumping, and the flying kick. His feet complained about every pebble in the path. But he kept going, determined not to fall behind.
As they walked, his brain began to process everything again. Putting the pieces together, trying to form a coherent picture of the all that absurd.
Dinosaurs still exist here in some form.