When I've finished surveying my surroundings, I survey myself, instead. My shin has a poultice laced to it with soft vines and there are bandages wrapped around my wing. shoulder and torso. Paste of some sort has been slathered on areas where the mimyckahs tried to gouge chunks of my flesh.
I raise my eyes back to the Shadow-Wing. "I do not know what you did to deserve banishment-"
His female huffs and crosses her arms like I have just offended her. She is defensive of him, then. I remember our females telling me her name is 'Dove' - a bird creature from their homelands - they also told me the name is a symbol of peace.
This female doesnotlook peaceful.
"- but I thank you for saving me, Shadow-Wi-" one glance at Dove and I can see she is displeased already. I do not have time to placate Shadow-Wings and their fiery little humans. "-Ezryk," I say instead. I can be nice. If it means I get back to my Ah-Lanah I would do anything. "Please," I say, sitting up even further, but swaying a little as I do so, my mind feeling light and my vision blurred. Ezryk raises his dagger again, pointing it at me in warning. I hold up my palms but wince. "Please, Ezryk. I need to get back to my tribe. To my female."
"This isn't a kidnapping, you know," Dove says, her tone snappy. "We could have left you out there to get torn apart by those things, but we didn't. And we don't plan on keeping you, either. But those things are still out there right now. Ezzy can smell them."
I nod my head but then stop when even that is too painful. The Shadow-Wing must have a keen sense of smell. All I can scent is whatever evil thing they had smeared all over themselves and the dirt all around us. I do not know Ezryk's crime, but he would have made an excellent tribe hunter. I suppose that has to be the case for the Shadow-Wings that survive out here. I jut my chin toward him. "Cover me in that and let us walk among them, then," I say, guessing that the horrible smelling paste is what keeps the mimyckah at bay.
Ezryk blinks at me as he stays hunched over on his haunches here in this little underground hideaway. When he finally speaks, his voice is deep and sure, "I will not risk my female, Second Spear. We will wait."
Even the exhale I let loose hurts. Everything hurts.
I wish I could see the stars while we wait. I wish I could tell them that I will make it back to her.
There is no doubt in my mind about that. Even as I feel myself slipping back into that welcoming darkness.
CHAPTER 26: ALANA
The Protectors we have been left with are useless.USELESS. None of them can track my Mavyx. None of them have found him in two days.
TWO DAYS!
I've been going out of my God-damn fucking mind!
Not even Rynn can find him. It's like he's vanished from the jungle completely. Or the mimyckah have-
I don't want to think of that possibility.
I can't.
I can't.
He has to be alive.He has to.
I never even told him how much he means to me. I never-
He might be gone and he neverknew.
"You should send out another search party," I tell Rynn.
His tail flicks behind him. "There are already five pairs out there searching the area near the mountain. If I send more, there will not be enough to Protect the females here at the village."
I grit my teeth. "Send. More."
He nods to himself and gives me a sad look. I despise that sad look. I've been on the receiving end of it a lot over the past two days. "Ah-Lanah, if anyone could survive the attack you described, it would have been Mavyx. I want to find him. He was my friend-"
"Was?"
Don't give me that'was'bullshit, I think, glaring at Rynn.
"Get Tryk back here," I demand. "He can search too. Mav can't have just vanished!"
"Hehas beensearching. He found noth-"
