Travelling so long, so far, in the wastes alone. Not alone. Almost alone. The winds howl and carry my thoughts into the sky, is he still there? Watching us? Powerless to help us. We are on our own. For all of our advancement, all of our intellect, all of our pride, our future now rests on an old man crawling through muck.

Keep going. Keep going. All I can do is keep going. I have hope in this dream, the only one I have left. It is enough. As long as we have one dream, just one, we can keep going.

-Doc Vorran

TALEA:

Lesedi pleads with me as she holds out a piece of cooked yar meat. “Talea, please, eat more.”

I pull myself away from leaning against the wall. “She hasn’t come back yet.”

Lesedi grabs my hand and slaps the meat down into it. “Then pretend she’s dead and eat in celebration.”

“No.” I glare ahead into the darkness with the warm orange light behind me. “She won’t die.”

My sister lays a soft hand on my arm. “Neither will you. Please, eat.”

I take a bite of the meat, it’s alright. Less flavor than I imagined it would be. Honestly it tastes the same as the zigon, does all meat taste the same? Maybe it would be better if we did more with it than just cook it over a fire. Lesedi stays beside me and continues eating her own portion. She cringes with every bite. I chuckle and chew with more fervor, if she’s willing to eat it I should be too.

“It’s awful stuff, but it’ll go a long way in getting everyone back on their feet.” Lesedi tears off another piece, it comes away in strings and she almost gags.

I laugh and wrap my right arm around her. “You’re very brave.”

Her cheeks puff up like she might vomit, but then she swallows and pats a fist against her chest. “You do realize it’s body parts we’re eating? Body parts. Our banya eats this, it’s basically garbage.” She makes more gagging sounds.

I shake my head with a grin. “Funny, we got the same reaction when feeding the nightstalkers mushrooms.”

She holds out the last of her meat and wiggles it as if that might help. It doesn’t. “Everyone has their own tastes.” She closes her eyes tight and tosses the rest in her mouth trying to chew as fast as possible. She speaks in muffled words with a mouth full of food. “This is not mine.”

I tighten my arms around her and give a squeeze of moral support. Turning around I see my pack, or what’s left of it. Thrik’s body has been dragged against the wall, Lesedi covered it with a cloak. I step towards the pack and crouch down beside Meekala. Othin sits across the fire with Vrx and Kr’thitch. They look at each other like they’re talking, but their mouths aren’t moving. Neither are their faces.

“What does this mean for us?” I gesture towards the wall where Thrik’s body lies.

She swallows the last of her portion and sighs. “We will continue. It is what we do.”

I press down against the ground and fall into a sitting position, a piece of body language that tells her I’m committing to this conversation. “I know that, but, well-”

Meekala taps me with her elbow and interrupts. “You fear he was the bane and we now have no enforcement.”

I sigh. “Yeah.”

She shakes her head. “Do not worry Tu’kari. The pack follows you by choice now. You are your own enforcement.” She smirks. “Besides, Thrik was not our only bane.”

I frown. “There’s more than one? But Wikon said he sent one of his banes.”

Meekala pauses and smiles, there’s pride in her with that statement. “Knowing Wikon, if he sent many banes then that would also include one.”

My eyebrows shoot up and my eyes widen. “A technicality? That’s pretty close to a lie there isn’t it? I thought-”

She shrugs. “Our minds do not work in lies, the crafting of what is not true gets muddled. But, in something that is mostly true, things are clearer.”

I fall away in thought, something I love about nightstalkers. If I want, I can just check out of a conversation without warning, they don’t even bat an eye at it. They simply shrug and carry on with what they were doing. Of course, that means they do it to me too, nightstalkers don’t end conversations so much as they leave them when there’s nothing left to say. I think back to Rala and I become uneasy. She’s a nightstalker, she can’t lie. But they can use half-truths, or rather mostly-truths.

I know trouble is brewing, I can feel it in my bones. But it’s like being attacked by a shadow at night. I try to look for the danger but all I can see is darkness. I know something is coming towards us, I can feel it, but I can’t figure out what it is. I’ve tried asking Lesedi but all I get is “perhaps” which makes me want to slap her.

My thoughts come crashing to a halt. In the same moment all of us look up and jump to our feet. Something is coming. I close my eyes and feel, I reach out with my life sense. I can only feel one person, but in the echoes of the tunnel I can hear the deep rumble of a group running against the stone. I lock eyes with Othin and without a word we both know what’s coming.

Lesedi bolts to my side and though she’s drowning in fear she doesn’t show it. Her face has gone cold as well as her voice. “It’s the whole family now.”

I unclip my hammer and step towards the tunnel. “How many should we expect?”

She shrugs. “I’m not sure. The yars are supposed to be hibernating. They would only wake up if provoked.”

Echo seems to appear from nowhere with her knives ready. “You mean like if a bunch of intruders walked in then killed and ate their uncle?”

Lesedi pulls at her hair. “Yes, but why was that one awake? All of them should be sleeping!”

I take a deep breath to steady my rage, no time for suspicions right now. “We’ll have to kill them all.”

“Thrack Tal!” Echo smiles with eyes as blood thirsty as a nightstalker’s.

I turn to Lesedi. “You stay here.”

She crosses her arms. “Talea I-”

I wave my hand in front of her face. “I don’t have time to argue. You’re going to babysit those zigon. I don’t want you fighting. And if it all goes belly up, you’re going to get on one and get away from here!” She nods without argument.

I turn to my fighters. “They’re coming at us with teeth and claws, but we’re far from defenseless.” I see grins of blood lust spread all around. My breath catches in my chest as I turn to Lesedi. “How many spark fruits do we have?”

Her face loses its cold calm, panic rises in her as she responds in a short breath. “Two.”

My lips pull into an apologetic cringe. She paces to her pack in quick steps and pulls out the bag of spark fruits with delicate care. She’s cared for them along this entire journey, she’s kept them intact this whole distance through everything. All so she can write by lanternlight to keep her sanity. She hands the bag to me.

I take it and nod. “I’m sorry. You’ll have to write by firelight from now on.”

She nods, I know it won’t be the same. What hurts the most is how she doesn’t argue it. She resigns herself to loss so quickly, as if it’s expected. I push the feelings to the back of my mind. We don’t have time. I look over my pack and wave over Othin. With care I pull out a murky fruit, the walls are translucent but the fluid is white. It looks like it’s filled with milk.

“Throw too hard, it’ll explode in your hand. Too soft and it won’t make it to your target.” I caution as I rest a fruit in his hand. He nods and holds his hand still with care.

I snap at Echo and as she approaches, I steal a knife from her belt. I use it to cut a slit in my sleeve and tear the cloth off. Wrapping it around the knife I take the other fruit and put a small nick in the top to allow a small stream of fuel pour from it onto the bandaged knife. I hand it back to Echo, who beams with an excited grin.

“Fighters, to the sides.” I take in a deep breath holding the spark fruit in my hand. It’s not the best plan, but it’s all we have. “When you see the fire, kill. But stay away from the flames.”

The charging yars reach an almost deafening level of noise as their roars echo down the tunnel to us. I nod to Echo who happily shoves her knife into the fire. Flames burst into action and she grins with outright bliss. She won’t miss, she never has.

Lesedi looks at me with wide eyes at the insanity of it all. I smirk. “They’re half plant, right?” Lesedi nods. “Good. Let’s hope that means they’ll burn.”

The response of screams and hoots tells me I have the pack’s approval. Meekala bolts off to the left with the twins and Jar’kog, they form a defensive cluster. Vrx, Gi’mntat and Kr’thitch veer to the right and creep along the walls ready to pounce. We’ll only have a few seconds; they move so fast they can tear us apart before we know it. A few seconds to see the target, aim, and not miss. In battle, a few seconds can mean everything.

Othin stands proud beside me. “You are amazing.”

I glare into the darkness ahead of us. “Nobody dies today.”

The yars come into view and in those few seconds, chaos explodes. Othin and I throw our spark fruits and blessedly, they hit our targets. Two yars in the middle of the charge. Echo throws her flaming knife and the yar it hits goes up in a plume of fire. Scared and confused it rams into the one beside it and the fire spreads. Screams howl into the tunnel as nightstalkers pour from their flanks.

We have our distraction. Seeing the bright fire, and their companions burning in front of them, the previously focused herd breaks apart in confusion and terror. The burning yars bolt into the mass and, though it doesn’t spread with as much vigor without the spark fluid, spread the flames through the herd. Panicked prey is a nightstalker’s bread and butter.

The tunnel flashes with violence. The fire bought us a handful of seconds, but that small advantage is all we need. My pack leaps into action as Meekala with her swords spinning cuts into the side of one before it can turn its head onto her. The twins twist and flip into the air landing on the back of another, holding onto Viko with her feet, Daku swings underneath and rips out the throat. Blood sprays into the air lit by the burning orange flames.

Gi’mntat leaps into the air moving swift like a leaf floating down from a tree. In a flash he slashes his way through with one long but thin sword. He heads straight for one of the burning targets and guts it in an eyeblink. Kr’thitch being the legs that he is charges into the fray, slides underneath one, and rams his claws up into its abdomen. Jar’kog plants himself with his back to a wall and cuts down anything and everything that comes towards him. Smart.

Wielding my hammer, I swing the rope and smash the studded ball into the muzzle of the nearest animal, it roars and turns its attention towards me. How did that not kill it? In fact, most of them are still on their feet. Even the one bleeding from its throat rears up into the air and swipes at the twins with its massive claws. I gasp, they’re so much bigger than the last one we fought. Because that last one was a juvenile.

Horror reels through me and I realize we are in way over our heads even with fire on our side. But we’re committed and we have to keep going. We have no way out but forwards. I reel the hammer back in and swing my entire body to propel the ball back into the skull of the already wounded yar. It dodges, and I miss. I twist to pull the ball back to me and spin dodging the clawed paw of my opponent. It gurgles blood as it roars, it will die, but I need it to fall faster. They all need to die faster. We’ll only last so long.

The yar charges towards me again and in one swift movement I drop to my heels, grab my knife, and leap back up driving it up from the soft middle under the mouth into its brain. I pull my knife out dripping with blood, the yar stumbles and collapses. Two-arms fold underneath my armpits and yank me out from under the body before it falls on top of me. I glance up, Othin.

I shoot him a smile and see blood running down his body. “I trust none of that is yours.”

He shrugs. “Not yet.”

I nod. “Keep it that way.”

He smiles again and leaps away back into the fight. I see him bound onto a yar and attack it with nothing more than his claws. It’s strange to see Othin turn so savage, he’s always so held back and reserved. He fights himself in everything and holds himself to a high standard. In a flashing moment he tears out the yar’s eyes. Well, this is the time to turn all that control off. I push it away and leap back into the fray.

I grab the rope of my meteor hammer and pull it back into action as I smash it into the face of an already injured animal. It roars while blood gurgles from its wounds and with one arm swipes me aside. I fly from my feet and smash into the wall feeling pain shock through my entire body. Air leaves my lungs and I gasp for breath, pain wrings through me and I push myself back to my feet. I can hear the screams of killing and the roars of death, I think we’re winning. It’s hard to tell.

I will not hold my pack back, I will not be the protected, I will be the fighter. I dodge another swing of a clawed arm and hear it scratch into the stone beside my head. The yar’s face looks mangled and its body heavily damaged, it’s massive form swings at me again but its movements are labored. That works in my favor. Dodging another blow, I bring my hammer down into its skull again, at the same time I shove my knife into its existing throat wound and cut farther in pulling it across. The beast shudders and I leap away as it collapses.

Before I can revel in my victory, I feel pain slice across my back. My body stumbles forwards as my skin burns and pain is all I can feel. So much can happen in a handful of time, we can live or die in seconds.

Turning around I see a giant of a creature rearing up to slam its weight down on top of me, claws first. Before I have a chance to blink another body slams me from the side grabbing me by my shoulders. My body is shoved backwards and pinned against the wall. Looking up I see the face of Vrx, his enormous hands swallow my arms and trap them at my sides. My eyes widen as I realize what’s about to happen, and I blink.

The yar comes down, on Vrx. His eyes close and he roars, but he doesn’t move. I struggle against his arms, I can save him, I can help him. But he’s pinned me so tight I can’t move. The yar roars as it slashes with its arms, Vrx doesn’t move. No, nobody dies today. Nobody.

I yell. “Let me go Vrx!”

His eyes open for only a second, he stares down at me and among the chaos and screaming I hear three words as he shakes his head. “Tu’kari must live.”

More screams echo from the walls and in a moment the yar relents and collapses backwards. I hear more screams and roars and then the tunnel goes quiet. Vrx loosens his grip and falls to the ground. Behind him I see a victorious Rala holding the severed head of a yar. She smiles with a broad grin. I look around, the yars are down. I want to yell at Rala, accuse her, challenge her. But there’s no time.

I call over to the others. “Help me! Vrx is hurt!”

It takes all of us to haul Vrx’s massive body back to camp. He’s hurt bad, he’s bleeding out, but he’s alive still. He needs to stay that way. Nobody dies today. Please, nobody dies.

✽✽✽

LESEDI:

His eyes close and his chest expands for the last time. Vrx is gone. I turn to Talea hunching over his body and lay a hand on her shoulder. “I’m sorry.”

Her voice chokes as she fights back tears. “But, he’s a nightstalker. We-”

I shake my head. “He lost too much blood. Nobody can come back from that.”

I try to pull her in for a hug but she pushes away from me and leaps to her feet. She mutters to herself. “He was protecting me.”

I stand up treading with care. “Because you’re important.”

“No!” Tears flash in her eyes as her blood-soaked hair whips around. “No one should die for me!”

I take a deep breath and try to sound comforting but firm. “Talea, you need to realize-”

“No!” She cuts me off with red eyes flaring. In realization she shrinks back and storms away.

I let out a slow breath, I’m worried about her to say the least. There’s so much pressure heaped upon her shoulders and in her naivete I think she believed we could get through this without anyone dying if she just tried hard enough. That’s not true. I look around at the bloodied fighters most of which are sleeping right now. I try to tick in my head who will make it through all of this. I don’t know, all I can be sure of is Talea. She’ll survive anything and everything that comes towards her, even the improbable.

My eyes glance over to Othin. He stands beside Talea giving her three feet of space and waits. They stand apart for several minutes until she reaches over and entwines his fingers with hers. I gulp. It terrifies me to my core to see them together, he is her greatest weakness. I don’t think she sees it yet, but of all the things that can’t kill Talea, Othin can.

“There is a story that reminds me of them.” I jump as I turn to see Meekala appearing next to me, also looking at them.

“I’m sorry?” I take a deep breath to calm myself. I’ve gotten more used to them but it’s still terrifying to have nighstalkers sneak up on me like that.

She ignores it. “Do you know why we kill harbingers?” My eyes widen and I shake my head. She waves her hand. “You think we are monsters. We are. But not without cause.”

I relax a bit and settle into the conversation. “I assume it’s for a very rational reason.” My words drip with sarcasm that Meekala doesn’t pick up on.

She frowns. “You do know what happens when a harbinger dies yes?”

I look away. “The partner dies.” I see Talea and Othin holding hands and it feels like a punch in the chest. “Especially if the bond is particularly strong. Some can live for a few days or even weeks after the death of a bond mate. But, if one dies, the other does too.”

Meekala nods. “With moonrunners, we kill. Before Wikon came it was chaos. To have a harbinger would make you weak and bring your death.”

I nod with understanding. “Because if they get into a fight and are killed, you die too.”

She purses her lips. “Yes. But if we kill our own harbinger-”

“It doesn’t kill you.” I can’t help but interrupt.

I pause for a moment in thought and Meekala looks away at Talea. We had never tested this among skysingers, a bondmate is a gift from Father Sky. No one in their right mind would murder them. My mind falls away and delves into the myriad of books I’ve read, their pages scan through my brain at the pace of lightning as I search for the information. What makes bondmates special is their physiological link to each other, their minds connect to form a unified consciousness.

This affects their bodily functions, controlled by the mind, to have that bond severed suddenly throws the survivor into shock. It can result in a sudden cardiac event that stops the heart or it can progressively shut down the body as the person loses their will and ability to live. But perhaps, if the person purposefully kills their bondmate, severing that connection with their will prevents the shock element. I need to do so much more research.

I pull myself back from the vortex of my thoughts to see Meekala content in standing beside me in silence. “Even if you’re able to prevent your own death by killing them, severing that kind of connection must have ramifications on the mental state.”

Meekala nods. “Yes, their minds break. But with moonrunners, that makes them stronger.”

That makes sense, even severing the connection by choice it would cause damage and trauma to the mind. Though I suppose that’s why they kill their harbingers as soon as they find them, before the connection grows too strong. I imagine killing your bondmate after a full connection has been established would cause full blown insanity, it would shatter you.

“They were the founders, they lived long before I was born. Before Wikon was born. They chose to unite instead of kill when they found each other.” Meekala’s tone frames it like they made a bad decision. “They were powerful moonrunners. Killed more enemies than anyone. Together they carved out the territory of the Blood Bane.”

I frown in thought. “Carved out? Who claimed the territory before you?” I shudder hoping the answer isn’t skysingers.

“The day people were few, by then they had made their wall and chose to hide.” She brushes her elbow against me as if to reassure me. “Moonrunners killed each other more than daypeople. We were scattered among the hills and trees as lone hunters. The founders saw what the daypeople had. Unity. They gave moonrunners a choice, join or die.”

I cross my arms. “Wait, to keep yourselves from fading into extinction you killed more of your people? How does that make any sort of sense?”

She shrugs. “Much of what we do makes no sense to you. But their campaign worked. At least, it had been working. Until one was killed in the fighting. The other broke into shattered pieces but did not die. Instead they blackened into a shadow of rage and pushed forward with the ideal. That raged fueled the mind until a sea of blood flowed beneath their feet and all in the territory bowed to them.”

“Which one died?” I ask trying to form the picture in my mind.

Meekala takes a step back and turns away from Talea and Othin. “It does not matter. The point is the same.”

“What?” I step towards her fully drawn into the story.

“Moonrunners are creatures of power that find strength in rage. I see much power in Tu’kari, you do not need to worry. She is not the sort of person to wither away. If the worst was to come, she would tear the world apart and tread enemies beneath her feet.” She pats me on the shoulder and walks away.

I continue looking at my sister and Meekala’s words don’t comfort me. If anything, I feel more apprehensive. What will happen to Talea is something happens to Othin? It’s true, she’s not the kind of person to wither away and die. She survives. She fights. I feel my stomach pull into knots as I look around at our pack. We are out here to save the world from the worst kind of monster. But if the worst comes to pass, and she is alone, who will save Talea?

✽✽✽

TALEA:

My face is stone cold and the rest of me feels numb. “We will remember both of them. We will tell their stories until the Moon Mother places them in her song for all time.”

I hear the agreement from the rest of the pack as we look on at the corpses of our fallen. Moonrunners always burn the dead in a great pyre, the nobler the death the more committed the clan is to fanning the flames. A fire big enough to be remembered not only by the clan but by the Moon Mother herself. Those who die as cowards or weaklings are burned up without ceremony or special words. These two deserve the greatest pyre we could give them, but in the tunnels that isn’t possible. Instead we have to be content with laying their bodies among the glowing mushrooms. I wonder if the Moon Mother can see down here, if she’s real. I can do one thing for them though; I will never forget them. I will make sure they are remembered.

Our pack turns away from the friends we leave behind and moves forward into the tunnels. That’s all we can do, keep moving forward. No matter the loss or the pain, it’s our only choice. I hang back by the bodies as the pack moves along guided by Meekala and Lesedi at the front. Only Lesedi can understand the signs on the walls.

I feel someone behind me and I know who it is, I can feel it in my core. With instincts flaring I spin and grab the arm pounding it into the wall beside me. I stare into Rala’s eyes with her wrist pinned beneath my palm.

My words come out as a snarling growl. “You killed them. I know you did.”

She smiles wide. “The yar attack was devastating. I am glad I could save your life.” She leans closer so only she and I can hear the conversation. “Half moon, pay attention. I saved your life; I can take it back if I choose.”

I feel sick to my stomach. “Vrx saved my life, not you.”

She chuckles under her breath. “He was a convenient distraction. He kept you alive long enough for me to take the kill.” Her voice drops to a deep, breathy, whisper. “So, you see, pitiful halfmoon, Vrx died because of you.”

Rala yanks her wrist free from my hand and turns, sauntering away. I call out to her. “What about Thrik? Did you kill him?”

She glances over her shoulder to flash a satisfied smile. Then saying nothing she turns and walks away. Half-truths and omission, tools at her disposal. She killed him, I know she did, I can feel it in my bones. I don’t know why, and I don’t know how, but I know she’s responsible for Vrx also. She’s a shadow I can’t see, she has an endgame and motives I can’t find.

I shudder, of everything we’ve come across and everything we will, Rala is the most dangerous creature out here.