Take Me Away

The day had started out gorgeous. A radiant sun illuminating every inch of the land, no clouds as far as the eye can see. Only the clear baby blue of the sky as even as a silent pool. With the migration of birds and bugs alike, there had been plenty to study and the world was filled with music. Birds and young frogs chirping. It was idealistic and the young boy had gotten lost in the world around him, trying his hardest to discover all the things he had read in his books but had yet to see in person. So…why couldn’t it stay so blissful as iron consumed the air and whines circulated around the forest like an eerie will o wisp luring its next victim. If only it was something so built on fairy tales, but this was a cruel reality as pain rippled along a crimson coated frame that was once so perfectly white and unblemished. Curiosity had led one a little too far south and the consequences had been drastic toward the one so innocent of a crime he hadn’t even known he committed until fangs coiled and snapped into his flesh and tore him to shreds by those Imperial Soldiers. He wanted to call out to his family, for one of them to scoop him up but he knew it would be fruitless. None of them had a reason to dwell here and what if it enticed more soldiers to come? Bird song had been silenced and replaced with the daunting caw of ravens and crows seeking an easy meal as they circled in wait for nature to continue the cycle of life. He laid there on his left side, focusing on his breathing with every ounce of his consciousness. In. Out. In. Out. In. Out… How it hurt, able to feel each rib expand where teeth and claw had punctured, making his chest shake as he closed his eyes to try to block the fact his vision was hazy. He did not believe a fog had rolled in over the course of a matter of minutes, not like the way he was seeing. That whining would soften as he continued to only pay attention to his breaths. Out and in. It was too painful to be a dream and he was afraid to move, thinking he might just bleed out faster or fall right back over. If they thought he was dead, maybe he’d be safer. He had at least removed himself most of the way from the border, back into the safety of the Fae Forest. What if one of the Jacobites thought him an intruder into this land when this was his home? He didn’t like his odds on either front as he took in a far deeper breath before hoisting himself to his paws, drawing his broken body toward some foliage as he heard movement from more than one direction, trying his best to hide but the blood trail would make that endeavor pointless as he flopped into the brambles and bushes. He was no better hidden than he was before, but he felt at least a little safer, unaware of how loudly his breathing truly was or how his fur popped out amongst the green. He was just trying to survive the best he could. The wounds, though painful, didn’t seem fatal if he could just…survive.

STOCK➤ Kati H - Dawnthieves ART ➤AMPHI

Fae Forest. Roisin had tried to avoid anything that was associated with them ever since they had used her deceased brother's face to torment her family. She was wary of their power. It was beyond anything that an ordinary wolf could comprehend. The Samaires had always respected the natural spirits and beings that could not be seen by the mortal eye. Roisin had been raised on stories about how the fae’s favour was a boon, but could easily turn to a curse because of how fickle they were. If it wasn't for the border she would have avoided the creepy forest.

Once upon a time it had been her childhood playground and now it was a graveyard of memories and regrets. The past was always two steps behind while her future seemed to get further and further away no matter how hard she chased after it. Revenge or redemption. She had failed to redeem herself in the eyes of her father so all she had left was the grudge she held for the Vanadiums.

Seeing white fur stained with blood made her tremble with anticipation. Was it him? Was he truly dead? Roisin approached, slowly at first, all too aware that it could be a prank from the fae. A white paw turned his face towards her and she realised that it wasn't Elias after all. Snowy brow furrowed dark thoughts creeping into the light now that an opportunity lay at her feet. The resemblance was one that couldn't be a coincidence. It was Elias’s child. She grabbed him by the scruff, and dragged him to a more secluded part of the fae forest so that nobody would find them.

Her neck muscles were aching and she was panting heavily by the time she was done. Keeping him alive was a priority. As much as she hated Elias and anyone who shared his blood, she wouldn't let a child die. Her first aid efforts were clumsy and ugly compared to someone properly trained, but it would have to do. A few scars wouldn't kill him.

code: elyon | art: ookamina

His whole body would tense as the steps seemed to be getting closer and closer until he would force himself to go limp, trying to make his breathing shallow enough to appear dead as a fallen tree. Though what if whatever was coming ate wolves? He heard stories of even the fae eating children, granted he wasn’t about to start believing in them just cause he was light headed. Even as close to unconscious as he was getting by each unruly second, he wouldn’t allow himself to start spinning into delusions of little imaginary creatures, even if one popped up into his vision right now. He would credit it to a hallucination from blood loss since that made way more sense to him. As he slouched, losing all rigidity to his body, he would feel the looming presence of something larger than a squirrel checking him out and he didn’t dare open his eyes. He remained that way even as a paw touched his face, though he couldn’t help the flinch of his brows as pain danced with the gentle movement the creature did. Though the paw was small, he would notice it was a canine probably no bigger in size than his mother, comparing the touch to hers. It wasn’t quite the same. The perfume was all wrong. This one was more musky while his mother’s was sweet like flowers but there was hope that would cause his eyes to open enough to see between his pale lashes. Fox woman. This wasn’t his mom. Out of everyone he knew, she scantly reminded him of his uncle, if only from the fire pelt but even that was vastly different. This stranger was orange while his uncle was cranberry. It was her eyes that made instinct cause him to shake and wish to flee instead of pretending to be dead. There was something sinister there, just as cruel as those that harmed him but in a way he couldn’t determine seemed all the colder. He didn’t get to see her for long before she moved, making him think maybe she was going to go away and he would be safe from further torture. That wasn’t the case as he jolted as the feeling of needles digging into his nape. He wanted to fight it, to jerk away but aside from digging his nails into the earth and making the stranger’s life harder, he couldn’t really do anything to combat her. He was tired. He was weak. He was at her mercy; he had a feeling didn’t even exist. Once released, he started to question if she was enemy or ally as he curled up more into himself, trying to block her from touching anything vital. Pale blues danced with her movements, watching her with scrutiny as she teetered around trying to apparently help him. Ears pinned, watching how awkward she was despite not seeming shy or anxious. “You are bad at this…” he murmured meekly into the fur of his own tail that covered a good portion of his face from her view as his shoulder reflexively flinched away from her clumsy touch and anywhere else she insisted on prodding him. He had bite and claw marks in a variety of places. It was clear more than one wolf had fun mauling him, blood even seeping from his crown. Chances are if they had aimed a bit higher, he might have a torn ear instead.

STOCK➤ Kati H - Dawnthieves ART ➤AMPHI