Rise of The Fallen

–Elazar–

Night had fallen, and despite having several hunters out searching the forest, no one had found Paku’s brother. I’d searched all along the river where he should have been fishing but there were no tracks. No signs of a struggle, no signs of any scraps left behind from hunting.

Nothing.

Had Paku’s brother even come this far? Perhaps he went downstream instead? But what would have caused him to change direction?

There was no reason for him to have ventured elsewhere, especially considering he had a newborn kit; it was impossible that he would have simply left the tribe grounds without a good reason.

So where was he?

Spotting something interesting on the ground, I crouched down to investigate, tail whipping back and forth in excitement.

It was those strange tracks again, the ones left behind by the intriguing female I’d recently encountered. They were far from the area I’d last seen her, and relatively fresh.

I lightly grazed my fingers over the tracks, staring thoughtfully at the path ahead.

Was she near?

My curiosity got the best of me, and I redirected my focus from searching for my missing tribe mate to finding her.

I didn’t notice anything else that seemed out of place as I followed her tracks. There was no noise aside from the many forest critters chattering about freely, and no movement from any creatures prowling with the moonlit shrubs. Everything was still. And no smells beside that of mud and–

My nose twitched and my body tensed as I sniffed the air.

Blood.

My stomach sank with fear. I inhaled, quickly locating the direction the scent came from before rushing through the trees. The scent of blood and the trail of her prints were in sync, even as her tracks seemed to become more frantic and sloppy, indicating that she’d begun running.

As I ducked and weaved through the ferns and branches of the path ahead, the stench of blood grew thicker. Stronger.

Too strong.

When the scent of blood became unbearable, I slowed my pace, eyes widening in dread as I caught sight of paw prints belonging to a devil-cat, overlapping the female’s own tracks. Frantically, I began searching, rushing through the trees until I stumbled upon a sight that froze my lungs in my chest.

A few feet ahead of me was a dark figure lying on the ground, unmoving. Cautiously, I clutched my spear, ready to strike.

I recognized the dark splotchy fur and the rigid form of the devil-cat but the creature seemed to be unresponsive to my approach. It was covered in blood, deep, uneven slashes all across its neck, as if someone had attacked it savagely but without skill.

As I neared, I spotted another figure lying only mere feet from the cat, also unmoving.

Is it her? The female?

Stepping closer, my eyes adjusted to the darkened area, locking onto the figure’s face.

My tail twitched, and I rushed forward, dropping to my knees beside her. Setting my spear aside, I stared down in horror at the small female dressed in her strange rags, bloody and unconscious on the ground.

Her coverings were torn open, and it was impossible to miss the deep claw and bite marks underneath her shredded attire as she lay there. Lifelessly. She must have fought back when the devil-cat pounced on her, barely managing to fend it off.

Laying my ear against her chest, I listened closely for a heartbeat. My breath stilled in my lungs as I waited for what felt like a lifetime. Until, finally, I heard a gentle drum. Once I heard those first few beats, I rushed back to my feet and grabbed the female. Placing one arm under her knees and the other behind her back, I lifted her up, holding her limp body firmly against me.

She was so small, so light and frail in my arms that I was worried the smallest jostle would break her. I shook that worry from my mind, frantically searching for help.

I need to focus!

Taking a shuddering breath, I rushed towards the nearest healing pool I knew of. I ran as fast as I could, the trees passing by in a blur. Soon enough, the light-flyers came into view, twinkling as they glided around my feet, and the plants in the surrounding area gave off a bioluminescent glow.

Pushing through the thick foliage, I found the glowing springs of shimmering blue water, glittering in the moonlight.

Glancing at the unconscious female in my arms, I waded into the water until I was about waist deep. Slowly, I lowered her into the shimmery pool and watched as the blood from her injuries mixed with the water.

My brows furrowed at the red color staining the pool’s surface as I held her up just enough for her head to stay above the water.

Why does she bleed red?

Shaking my head, I forced myself to focus on the task at hand once again.

I need to heal her or she may die. I can question all the strange things about her later.

Moving into a better position, I held her up with one arm, using my free hand to start tearing away her torn rags so the water could lap over all of her injuries and allow me to see exactly where she was wounded.

The more of her rags I removed, the more worried I grew as deep claw marks across her stomach, as well as bites on her arm and shoulder came into view.

Pulling away the last of the fabric, I froze, eyes narrowing in confusion. The dark pigment of her skin was…fading away? Hesitantly, I moved my hand over her arm, watching as the grayish-black color smeared and then dissolved into the water.

Inspecting her more closely, I realized it wasn’t just her arm where the color disappeared. Whatever dark pigment she had on her skin was being washed away by the healing pool, leaving pale, pinkish skin in its wake.

I stared down at the female, completely dumbfounded.

What in the seven moons?

Using my thumb, I carefully wiped away the black powder on her cheek and sniffed the strange substance. It burned my nostrils with the scent of smoke and ash.

Charcoal?

Baffled, I removed the rest of the powder covering her skin, mindful of her wounds. I kept her afloat in the water, letting it soak into her injuries before eventually carrying her out and laying her in the soft grass.

The strange color of her skin had me enthralled, and I struggled to focus on anything else as I studied her.

Forcing myself to tear my gaze away, I searched the area, finding some pempi leaves and moss before returning to her side. Covering her injuries with the moss helped to stop any bleeding and kept anything from crawling into her wounds. When I finished with that step, I used the leaves to cover the moss so it wouldn’t dry out too quickly and lose its medicinal properties.

Once her injuries were well taken care of, I laid my head against her chest once more, checking her heartbeat. I relaxed as the steady beat filled my ears once more.

Sitting back, I stared at her in wonder.

I’d heard about the pale demons known as humans that came from the sky. Many nearby tribes told unfavorable stories of these monsters and their cruel, greedy ways.

I’d heard of their weapons that made the forests scream before going silent, of their ruthless assaults upon our kind and how they’d slaughtered our people for sport. I’d even heard of their cruelty towards the creatures that lived in the forests. But from all those stories, I’d never heard of a human like this.

A female.

Many believed they simply didn’t exist, or were kept hidden away in the stars where they came from. Yet here I was, with one now.

The female before me did not stir in the slightest, nor did I expect her to. Not for a while. She was barely alive, and lucky to even be breathing. With how small and defenses she looked, it was hard to fathom how she could survive such a brutal attack.

Maybe she wouldn’t have if I’d been even a moment longer.

I’d seen men die from devil-cat attacks before. The creatures had a knack for burying their large teeth into the necks of their prey, guaranteeing a painful death. If you didn’t choke on your own blood, you often bled out from the deep puncture wounds left by their fangs.

Hesitantly, I brushed some wet strands of hair away from the female’s injured shoulder, glaring at the leaves covering her own puncture wounds.

An inch closer to her throat and she wouldn’t have survived.

There was an odd stirring of warmth in my chest as I took in every detail of her long hair and pale skin, her creamy complexion giving her an almost peaceful appearance as she slept. However, the more I inspected her body the more that warmth shifted to worry.

She was small, too small. Malnourished, given how many of her bones were protruding from her skin. Was that why she was out here on her own? She’d been hunting for food when I’d first encountered her. I’d robbed her of a meal that she’d desperately needed. Shame consumed me, but I pushed it away, refusing to dwell on such an issue while she was wounded and in need of care.

Instead, I focused on her features. The lack of tail and horns made sense now, but I was still baffled by her other oddities. Her fingers lacked any form of claws and we’re so tiny compared to my own.

Careful to not rouse her, I pulled her lip up, eyes widening in shock at her blunt teeth. Did all humans lack claws and fangs? They had no horns, no tail, no wings or venom… How did they even survive?

She was quite clever, however, when it came to evasion. She knew how to use her small form to escape predators, and had even found a way to blend in at night despite her pale skin. If I remembered correctly, she had even made herself a makeshift bow to hunt with, which must have taken time and dedication to find the appropriate materials. She was definitely resourceful.

Still, I wondered why she was alone. The humans had their own camp somewhere within the forest, and almost never traveled alone. Why was she not with them? Wouldn’t she be safer with them? Wouldn’t the males of her species be able to provide for her so she didn’t starve?

Unable to help myself, I gently combed my claws through her long brown locks, enjoying the feel of her silky, if damp, hair. She wore her hair down, so why did she not hold any mark if she was looking for a mate? There was no shortage of human males as far as I could tell. A fierce, resourceful female like her would have no problems mating with whichever male she desired.

Eventually, I pulled my gaze away from the sleeping female and looked around, unsure what to do. I couldn’t simply leave her here. Human or not, this female was hurt and in dire need of food and protection. Leaving her alone, injured, unconscious and unarmed, would mean her death.

Groaning, my tail thumped against the ground in irritation while I ran my hand down my face. I came out here to search for my missing tribe mate, and instead found a defenseless female on the brink of death.

I knew I should leave, let fate and nature take over, but every fiber of my being screamed at me to protect this female.

I reached out to touch her face, my fingers grazing against her cheek. Her skin was softer than any fur I’ve ever felt. It made me want to hold her close.

Silently, I sat there, watching her sleep peacefully while my inner turmoil waged war inside of my head, trying to come up with a solution to my predicament.

Seeing the slightest shiver from the female seemed to chase off all reservations from my mind.

Scooting over, I moved the small female closer and into my lap, holding her carefully against my chest, and doing my best to provide her small frame with warmth.

It doesn’t matter if she’s human; she needs help. And I am here, I am capable of helping her. I won’t leave her to die.

Determined, and more sure of myself now, I held the small human closer. I would deal with any consequences for my actions in the morning. For now, all I needed to focus on was keeping her safe.