Kinverse: Volume One

PATH OF THE EMERALD MAIDEN

A naive young monster's tale by Moros, aka KinverseWriter

Legal Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise herein mentioned. No copyright infringement is intended. All characters and events in this story are entirely fictional. Any similarity to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events, is purely coincidental. This work of fiction contains disturbing content.

Reader discretion is advised.

Description:

A young woman from a pre-neolithic society is accidentally whisked away to another world entirely during a raid on a research lab run by alien invaders. Stranded with no friends, badly injured, and no idea where home even is, she's forced to live off the land and learn how to survive in this strange and hostile world.

There's only one slight problem, though.

She's not trapped in this world with them. They're trapped in this world with her.

Categories:

Adventure, Coming-of-Age, Isekai, Erotica.

Disclaimers:

This story contains sexual elements and disturbing themes. The contents aren't purely intended to be pornographic, but some scenes objectively are. This is about a giant monster that eats people, so reader discretion is advised. This story contains vorarephilic themes.

This story will have a very slow and intermittent pace to begin with. True stakes don't really show up until halfway through, though the build-up is always there in the background. This is ultimately not a story of grand adventure and defeating one's enemies to rise to the top, it is the tale of a lost and naive young woman growing as a person and learning new things. It is a personal one concerning her, and thus this story will be told in present-tense first-person.

Chapter 14: Interlude 2: The Afterparty

---

A/N:

The Frank interludes beg a huge question:

'What does this have to do with the protagonist's story? This is categorized as an erotica! There's all of this stuff about Frank, Sam, and Carey. How does this fit into the greater story?'

This chapter begins to answer that.

---

“See you later, Frank. Tell Goose dinner was great!" Richard says as I see his group off.

“Too scared to thank her in person?" I jest.

He lightly chuckles. “Nah, I just forgot to say anything 'til now."

“Yeah," chimes in his friend Mark, “and Spencer wasn't here to ruin things yet again."

At his words I notice Dan cringe and pale before stepping away, leaving early and attempting to hide his expression. Richard doesn't notice the shifty man's weird behavior and laughs off the remark before turning to Mark to reply.

“He skipped town or something anyway, or so Dan said. Not our problem any more," Richard says before looking back to me. “Anyway. See ya, dude."

He too steps away and I'm about to close the door behind their retreating forms but an odd thought rises to bother me. I call out to him as he walks down the driveway.

“Hey, Richard! Got a weird question before you go."

He says something to Mark and then turns back around as his friends continue leaving, a look of confusion on his face.

“What's up?" he asks.

I lower my voice a bit so his pals definitely don't hear--especially Dan. “Your buddy. What was his name, Dan? Little weaselly guy, friends with Spencer and Susan?"

He looks confused. “Yeah? What about him?"

I think for a moment on how to word things before continuing.

“Is he... doing alright? He didn't look so good and I think he nearly fainted when Goose was talking about her patty prep. He's not vegan, is he?"

Richard looks considerate for a moment before responding.

“No. Not that I remember. We grilled burgers last month at the campground and he ate at the Grillhouse."

“Weird. Because he excused himself for the bathroom after. It looked like the guy was gonna puke."

He frowns. “Huh. Weird. I'll talk with him later and ask." He shrugs. “Anyway, I've gotta catch up to my pals, see you 'round, ranger dude."

I close the door and head back inside.

With the party winding down and most of the other guests having left, things were in the process of moving indoors. I sit down on the couch amidst everyone and take a breather.

Dinner was great, as expected. I got to know Richard and his friends a bit more, Sam spoke up occasionally, and Carey was, well... Carey. Dan had been pretty jittery the entire time, not relaxing at all and getting worse for some reason when Spencer was brought up by Mark on the way out. Maybe Spencer had done something dumb enough to have to run from like knocking up another girl, and he knew something. Maybe, maybe not, but it wouldn't explain his weird behavior around Goose's burgers.

And as for Spencer... I'm not about to go poking my nose in a random asshole's business, especially one who is likely never going to be my problem again. I absentmindedly walk back inside, intending to sit down and rejoin the conversation.

The Fairbanks Residence isn't the biggest of homes. Two bedrooms, both occupied. Two bathrooms with one being in the basement. A cozy kitchen and dining area. A nice little living room. Everything you need to make a home. There's also the basement suite which is where Sam lives; its kitchenette is mostly ignored and is instead used for storage purposes, with the rest as a second lounge. Aside from the stairs inside there's also a large hatch with steep stairs that lead directly outside to the back yard.

It absolutely isn't a bad home--it's exactly what they need. It kind of makes me feel a bit bad for having my family's house all to myself, but I haven't really met anyone I'd be okay with renting to other than Carey and Sam... and they wouldn't need it. It's also already awkward enough between me and Sam without literally living together.

Flick flick flick.

“Yo. Earth to Frank. Wake up!" Carey playfully calls from in front of me and the couch.

I look up.

“Sorry, Carey. I tuned out. What were you saying?" I ask.

“Gotta talk to you a sec. C'mere," she answers.

Oh. Right. The thing. The important thing. Crap.

“Yeah, uh, just... gimme a sec, Carey. I'll be there in a moment."

She smirks and walks off, heading down the basement stairs. The rest of the remaining guests along with Goose and Sam continue talking in the living room around me. Sam briefly glanced our way when Carey startled me out of my thoughts, but that's it.

Cursing myself for my lack of actual planning, I follow her. This is any freshman's dream: sneaking off during a party to have a one-on-one chat with a girl he likes, but... yeah.

The basement itself consists of a simple hallway at the bottom of the stairs with a few doors leading off: one to the bathroom, one to Sam's room, and another to the main room-turned-storage-slash-lounge. The laundry machines are in the hallway itself. The door to the lounge is ajar so I head in and close it behind me; we're obviously not going to be talking about her in her own room and the bathroom would be both weirder and scandalous.

The room itself is pretty barren. Lots of boxes, an old mattress against a wall, and a 'college renter chic' lounge area. The space consists of an older TV with a worn and stained coffee table separating it from an ancient couch and chair set at which Carey sits, head in her hands.

She turns to look my way as I enter. “Alright, Frank. I'm gonna get right to the point here. I know you like me. Take a seat."

Ah. Definitely going to be an awkward conversation, then. I follow her direction, seating myself on the couch opposing her as the party goes on above.

She cringes before continuing. “...And you know that I only like you, as well... a friend." She looks away, unable to meet my eyes and I cringe as well. Eesh. “That hurts to say. You're a great friend and coworker Frank, but we both know things wouldn't work out. But that's not what I wanted to talk about."

I take a deep breath before replying. “You want to talk about Sam. I know."

She nervously scratches at her arm. “Yeah. She likes you, Frank. More than I think you know."

Nah, I think I have a pretty good idea.

“Oh I do know. I care about her too, I think, uh... a bit in the way you feel about me, as- you put it. But-," I take another deep breath and exhale to collect my thoughts. “-But I don't think it would work out with her, for... different reasons."

I think for a moment on how I want to word this before finally speaking. “She's... too timid and shy about it."

Carey just sighs.

“I know, Frank. Believe me, I know. I was hoping to try and talk you into asking her out. See if it would boost her self-esteem."

That's... pretty much precisely how I expected this conversation to go, and it was what little I did plan for. A part of me wonders if this sort of thing is the exact reason why Sam is like this; big sister Carey always taking care of her in lieu of an actual father. She's only, what, four years older than her, too.

And thankfully... I did have an answer ready for this.

“I'm sorry, Carey. I can't," I begin, earning a sheepish frown from her. “I can't. I get where you're coming from, but I think she needs to do it on her own or else she'll never move past it."

She glances away before responding, as if she's trying to hide her expression. “I... get where you're coming from, Frank. I don't want to be the big overbearing sister, but I care about her a lot, y'know? She's all I've really got other than mom."

I'm an only-child with dead parents, but at least they died when I was already an adult. I can't really empathize with their situation.

After a moment, I speak up. “I'll think about it, Carey. How about you try and nudge her in that direction a bit--don't force it--and we'll see. Alright?"

Goose's cackling breaches the floor. Carey looks back over to me, meeting my eyes. Her mouth is pursed.

“Alright."

I get up to return to the party, and Carey follows. As we enter, Sam stares over but immediately averts her gaze. Goose turns to me.

“Hey, Frank! I forgot to ask you earlier, what'd you think about that Dr. Jameson's 'hypothesis?'"

I retake my seat and try to remember what she's talking about. It's been a few days, but I come up empty.

“Uh... I think I stopped watching before that part. What'd he say?"

“Ha! Rushed over to give the good news, eh? He said he thinks it was aliens, Frank! Aliens! In Gold River of all places in the world!" She cackles again.

“Aliens, huh?" I ask.

Pssh. Sam getting brave and asking me out has better odds than that.

---

As per the park's own 'getting back to business' plan, Carey and I were back on the job. First we needed to assess the damage to the park, then we needed to get all of the signs off and reopen everything where management deems it's safe, and they'll do their management magic to figure out what to get fixed and how.

I don't know how you 'fix' multiple square kilometers of burnt temperate rainforest, but that's not my job.

She'd be checking out the camps on the east side of the lake and trails, which should take her all day and be a good amount of hiking. No objections from her of course. Her half is mostly a formality since the fire didn't get anywhere close, but it needs doing anyway. Trees could have fallen over that'll need clearing.

Meanwhile, I've got to assess the precise extent of the burn damages on the less accessible western side. Less hiking overall, but fewer official trails. The persistent rains had turned much of the hills to mud, rendering footing difficult and dangerous without established paths, so it wasn't really the easier half. Higher on the hillside I'd also have to contend with slushy ash.

It's been pretty much a constant downpour the past few days. This part of the world goes through hot and dry summers with drenching autumns, as if everything gets held back just for this. Supposedly the weather is at least nicer in the southernmost part of the island, but I doubt it's much warmer or any less muddy.

A bird chirps overhead in the light drizzle. That's a good sign.

It is pretty peaceful out here all things considered, though also a bit boring. I've spent a lot of the trip thinking about Sam, what to say to her, how to respond to her own actions assuming she makes any, and resolved to definitely try things if she builds up the courage. After all, what's the point in her getting brave if I'm too scared to try things?

Carey hasn't been responding over the radio after we started, so she must have forgotten it in her truck again. Having hiked up to the top of one of the hills, the view is pretty damn good at least, barring the burnt wastelands on three sides. Reception should be good too.

Trying one last time before starting the trip back to my own truck, I grab my radio from my belt and key it.

“Carey. Hellooo. Scatterbrain. Did you forget your radio again or have you just been ignoring me the entire time?"

And she gets on me about being more aware out in the forest. If something happens, she can't call for backup.

Suddenly my radio crackles, Carey's voice audible over the screaming engine of her truck.

“FRANK! Frank, I'm sorry I f- ahk, that doesn't matter! There's a fucKING-"

Before Carey can finish her sentence, her radio stops transmitting. Panicking at her sudden interruption I grab at my radio and press to transmit. Fucking jinxed it! Peaceful hike for hours and then this shit, right out of the blue!

“Carey? Carey?! Hello? What's going on? Carey!"

Half a minute of anxious waiting passes with only the sounds of nature around me before I get a response. Her voice is strained, and she only starts to speak after coughing for a bit.

“...Frank, I crashed, I- shit, fuck! Frank, help!"

“Carey! I'm coming, where are you?"

She doesn't respond.

“Carey?"

Fuck.

I switch channels on my radio. I need to call this in. Our boss Elijah is at the office--best case he's not out on lunch or something and he can drive out to see if he can find her.

---

It was hours before I finally got back to my truck. My first destination was the park center. I didn't bother trying to contact our boss again, it'd just waste the battery. Quickly parking, I throw the door open and sprint to the entrance passing a parked RCMP cruiser and Elijah's own ranger truck along the way.

With little regard for the front door I rush inside, quickly looking around. There are a few indoor rest areas for tourists in the main room, the front desk which Elijah usually mans, and some employee areas in the back. Seeing nobody but knowing someone must be around I head for the back.

Down the hall the door to the staff room is open and the sounds of conversation greets me, so I continue towards it.

“I don't know. Frank called it in, he hasn't said anything new yet but he should be back soon. He didn't have much-"

Cutting him off, I round the corner and enter the room. Elijah is seated along with a pair of RCMP officers, both men. On the table is Elijah's own portable radio, probably so he can hear if I or Carey call in, as well as empty lunch bags and tupperware containers. All three look up at my arrival.

“Ah, here he is. Frank, please take a seat. I called the police to help look, but… they haven't found anything over the past few hours."

Sitting down, I mirror his own dour expression. The officers are a bit uncomfortable and look a bit tired. Before either of them can speak up, Elijah introduces me.

“This is Frank," he says while gesturing to me, then to the officers. “This is officers Marty and Bill; I believe you and Marty have met before. Frank, I know you could've called again if you had any more information, but Carey absolutely didn't have anything else to say?"

His expression is grim. I shake my head, not… really thinking about much. I haven't spent much time at all thinking since Carey called in.

“No, sir. I haven't heard anything either, same as you," I respond.

Elijah continues. “Her truck wasn't on the main road and it wasn't in any of the campgrounds. We thought she must've been on one of the access roads, but… we didn't find anything. Not yet, at least. The park's big and we don't have many eyes."

Fuck. Carey… what the fuck is going on?

“The officers have a few questions for you so they can file a report. They're going to get a more thorough search organized, but that's going to have to wait until tomorrow, the police are busy with something going on in town."

The officer closest to me--Marty--frowns a bit more at that before addressing me. I have met him before... his specialty is missing persons in the park.

“Normally we'd have gotten on this hours ago but uh…" His expression shifts around a bit, like he's mulling something over. “It's… important. I can't tell you what's going on right now, but there was an incident in town. All hands."

Officer Bill butts in, realizing how it sounds, cringing a bit as he does. “...Not to say that someone going missing isn't important, but- we're in a tough situation. More officers should be available tomorrow."

God. Damn it. Carey could be in trouble, she doesn't have all night.

Clearly noticing I'm a bit panicked the second officer decides to shift things in a productive direction. “Now, I know you want to get out there and look for your coworker, and we plan to head out again soon too, but we need to ask you a few questions. The sooner we can file this report, the sooner all of this can get organized. Is that okay?"

Damn right I'm getting out there. And the sooner this is over with the better.

I sigh. “When it rains, it pours, alright. What do you need to know, officers?"

---

His questions were simple. Where I was, what I was doing, how I learned Carey needed help, what exactly she said. I told him my role in checking out the west half of the park, how Carey was out doing the east half, and that she'd been quiet on her radio all day up until she called.

That she crashed. That there was 'a fucking' something. That she needed help. Everything I already told Elijah, but it's a process, and fuck do I hate processes right now.

Elijah's checking out the access roads and the officers are together on the hiking trails. He ordered me to take it easy and check the campgrounds more thoroughly than they had time to. The others had already eaten lunch after getting back but I skipped it and didn't exactly bring that to their attention. Carey comes first.

Returning to Ralph River Campground, my second-to-last location to check, nothing seems amiss at first.

Walking around the yellow metal gate my hiking shoes crunch the gravel of the road underfoot. Birds chirp overhead, heedless to what's going on. The campground is empty, just as I'd left it, but only from what I can see. I need to be thorough--the officers only quickly checked in and since Carey had apparently crashed her truck, she clearly wasn't behind the locked gate.

I… don't feel good. Something's wrong. Maybe I'm being paranoid, maybe I'm not, but something has me on edge and I don't know what. It feels like I should be ready to jump back at any moment. My nerves are shot to hell.

Lost in thought, I trip a little, having stepped on something unnatural. Bending down, I find something shining half-buried in dried mud. I reach down and pick up the mud-coated object.

It's an empty can of beer. Which means I missed one. Great. I set it aside on a nearby park bench, but out of the corner of my eye I catch another glint just beyond the treeline. Investigating, I find… another empty can. And not just one, a whole pile.

What the fuck? How did I miss all of this?

Continuing further I enter a semi-secluded section of the campground, finding a yellow and black tent in the middle.

Or I didn't miss anything at all. Those bastards, that's Spencer and Susan's tent! They've been living out here! No fucking wonder!

Angrily stomping over to it, I reach down for its flap's zipper and tug it open, revealing an empty tent, a massive tear in its back, and its contents scattered.

What the fuck is going on? Where are those shitheads?! There are a few awful smells in the air, one the obvious scent of rancid semen, two faint ones I don't recognize, and… blood?

Glancing down, next to an upturned box and bag of used condoms is two small reddish-black puddles of dried blood.

My mind... blanks. I just-

What?

What's...

I round the tent and notice a muddy rut in the forest floor. I idly follow it as it weaves through the trees and undergrowth, noting a few more spots of blood which haven't yet been washed away by the rains.

There are divots and gouges in the mud; whether they're from before or after the rains I cannot tell. I just... I move. I follow the trail.

The sound of rushing water gets louder and louder, just as a horrendous scent on the wind rises. One of meat gone bad, of rot.

I break the treeline and the river opens up before me, and I find...

Oh god… the smell...

Instantly I'm on my knees, my stomach trying its best to puke, shocking me back to action. Holding my hand over my mouth and pinching my nostrils closed I take one glance back at the fetid remains before averting my gaze else the retching continue.

I leave, and for the second time today… I grab my radio to call in the mess that's landed in my lap.

ARC TWO: DISAPPEARANCES

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A/N:

I said that this chapter would begin to answer what Frank and Carey have to do with the plot. It did, but it's just left more questions. So begins the second arc.

The scene in the middle of this chapter is honestly pretty out of left field. It's jarring. There is build-up to it, but it's very short and you've gotta connect a dot or two like, say, where the protagonist currently is, and the foreshadowing of how hard Carey is on Frank about situational awareness--and yet she herself is a bit scatterbrained at times.

Carey gon' get ate?

We shall see.

The interludes serve as background context to support future chapters as the second arc begins. Interlude 1 established who Frank, Carey, Richard, Spencer, Susan, and Goose are. Last chapter built on Frank and Carey while establishing who Sam is. This one fulfilled that buildup. It's also showing the human side of the story in preparation for the future--a setting establishment chapter through and through.

The interludes are entirely varyingly detached PoV shifts that act as a foundation, essentially. They will be in the middle of and between arcs.

This chapter was also very dialogue-heavy and it was really hard to get said dialogues working right. It's a whole lot of Frank being talked at, not to, which is more due to just how the plot is going than my own writing. I've done the best that I can; I'm not good with dialogue.

Continuing my background dump about characters no longer relevant: Elijah is a minor character who isn't going to show up much in the future so I'll drop some information on him now as it will never come up in the story. He used to be a park ranger but in his fifties he got pretty badly sick and he couldn't keep working. Luckily, the manager at the time was retiring, and Elijah took over the position as a desk job. Just like Frank he's lived in Gold River for most of his life.