Banishment

A Strange, New World

I was cast out. Rejected of my Pride by the Patriarch. I went where all of the banished go—through a portal to a strange and every-changing land. I follow in the steps of rejects that have never been seen or heard from since their banishment; alas, this is my fate...
 
This place is hot like the plains of my home, but dense with vegetation. You can hardly walk here, so great is the foliage. Sounds fill your ears, drowning out specifics. The thrumming of insects, rustling of leaves, calls of birds, and calls of man-like animals. It is deafening. I counted three weeks before anything eventful happened. Much of that time was spent testing this place. And finding food, of course. I saw many strange and colorful things. Birds that looked like the rainbow, that would puff themselves up and strut around. Some that even spoke.
 
The first real event occurred when I noticed a massive black cat leering at me from the branches of a thick-trunked tree...
 

Azaga

She was spectacular. The way graceful way she bounded from the limb to the ground in front of me, her powerful muscles apparent beneath that sleek black coat with each movement she made. She looked me over and circled me, judging me. After a long moment of holding my breath, she nuzzled her head under my hand. She's been following me around ever since; I have called her Azaga.
 

Strange Gemstones

Three days after "adopting" Azaga, we stumbled upon a small collection of clear crystalline stones that held a green tint to them. We thought little of it until we stumbled upon another one. And four more, all heading the same direction. We'd broken course twice to see if more could be found elsewhere, but... none could. Curious, we made it our goal to seek out whatever it was that was leaving this trail behind...
 

A Pair of Stoutfolk and Their Sworn Enemy

Another day on the this gem trail found us on the first road I'd seen since my banishment. The first sign of civilization. And the first sign of life outside the animals of this jungle. For on that road were two stoutfolk. They spoke to us of a group of creatures they were hunting—they called them a nuisance, comparing them to something like rats—but, when I spoke of my hunt, they seemed both surprised and curious.
 
It was my turn to be surprised when they asked if they could join Azaga and I. It didn't seem like a bad thing, so along they came. I have never felt so loud. These two talked and talked. And they moved without grace. The armor they wore would've let a deer five miles away know of our presence. Were it not for the several groups of goblins that we encountered, I probably would've uninvited them from this hunt. But now, having seen these goblin creatures with my own eyes, I think their companionship is necessary. There were far too many of those goblins to have dealt with alone.
 
And so I ended my first day with the creatures of the Changing Lands.