Ayla
While Tayle worked on Sylis, the Moles retreated. I had no clue whether we'd won or lost this battle, but Tayle was busy stopping the bleeding in Sylis's belly, saying she didn't want to move him until that was under control. While she worked, Tobias filled me in on his situation with Callah, and I told him all about Meri and how different things were with Dragons.
He should've left by now. He should've gone to catch up with the rest, but he refused to go until he was sure Sylis would be okay. Then, when Tayle said he could be moved, it was Tobias who bent to pick the guy up.
"This way," Drozel told him, gesturing toward the Reaper camp.
"Bad idea," Zasen warned.
"No, I think it's a good one," I told him. "Tobias, these people are going to be mad at you, but the more who can see you in the light, the easier it will be when you come back."
"But he took their loved ones," Zasen said.
I made a noise to correct him. "Not a Mole concept. Tobias, you took their wives. Their children. You killed their friends and brothers. They will be very angry."
"And I can tell them who is alive," he said. "I remember their faces. I don't know their names, but I know there were seven."
"More than seven went missing," Zasen countered.
"Only seven were taken alive," Tobias told him. "I do not know about the rest, but I do know the hunters were told to bring back all the dead but ours. Wild men are demons in disguise, we were told. They shall be consumed because that is the only way to make them holy again, for the beasts of the Devil are beasts sure enough."
"Wow," Drozel muttered. "How about we not tell Meri that part?"
"Agreed," I said, looking at Tobias. "Or Callah. She wouldn't handle it well."
"She does not eat meat," he reminded me. "I've made it clear thatmywife will not waste the nutrition a hunter could use. It's been harder to explain my own meal choices, but I've managed."
"Meal choices?" Omden asked.
"He means that he doesn't eat meat either," I explained. "His mother was a Dragon, so he's probably never liked it."
"You were the same?" Tobias asked.
I nodded. "My mother said it wasn't right. It turned my stomach, so I only ate it when I had to. Usually when my father forced me."
"My father was not strong enough to force me for long," Tobias said, but his feet slowed and his eyes went wide.
I turned to see the Reaper camp spread before us. Fires were lit, people were being treated, and dogs were everywhere. They also turned, and a few dared to snarl in his direction.
"What the hell?" a woman demanded in Vestrian, storming toward us.
"Eriska!" Rymar called, moving to intercept. "This is our informant."
"Informants," I corrected, gesturing to Sylis. "One was wounded. The other wants to explain, but he only speaks English."
"Their way," Zasen added. "Mole English doesn't sound like you'd expect. Many of us can both understand it and speak it now, but we need a place for our informant."
"That big guy took my partner!" a Reaper yelled.
So I translated that for Tobias. He murmured, but Drozel was gesturing to where he could lay Sylis safely. Tayle was with him, saying something about how she'd take care of him now, but Tobias wouldn't understand that part.
Once he had Sylis comfortable, he stood back up and turned to the voice. "I did nottakeanyone. I did my best to scare children so they'd run the other way. However, if they knew I was helping you, they would kill me. So the women who were captured? I did guide them back. I knew I would not hit them, or shove them down. I only turned them because I'm large enough to withstand what my people call 'demonic strength.'"
Zasen translated all of that, then added, "And he said there are seven captives. He has descriptions."
I translated that to Tobias, and he began describing each of the seven women who'd been put in quarantine. A few people cried out in grief, getting confirmation their loved one was being held by the enemy. Far too many waited, tense, looking as if they weren't sure if hearing the right description would be a good thing or a bad one.
Then, "That's all of them," Tobias said. "The rest are dead. The ones missing were likely taken into the compound to be used as meat. We're told you're demons. Wild men and Dragons, but all minions of the Devil, and our only hope is to kill you so God can inherit the Earth and we can return to the surface." Then he gestured around. "But the surface is fine!"
