Chapter 28
Twenty-Eight
Ayla
The morning came much too early. Rymar woke me before the sun began to change the sky.
Stars had still been visible through my window!
We'd all packed the night before, so all that was left was getting dressed, gathering our bags, and carrying it all to the city stage, but not even Holly was enthusiastic about this.
Once there, six carts waited with the horses already attached. Zasen showed me where to store my things, then we had to wait around for the rest to arrive. And yet, we managed to leave Lorsa just as the sun broke over the horizon, turning the world around us bright enough for Dragons to see easily.
Then we walked. The horses made a nice noise with the clomping of their feet. The leather that held them to the carts jangled against the metal fittings. Yrena and Nyco rode ahead of us, leading the way, and the Dragons followed.
We had twenty from the militia, seven from the medics, two dogs, and two doctors.
Besides the Python, there was also the Myrtle, a woman named Giannin who was as blonde as me and tailless.
Some were members of multiple groups, so I wasn't sure how many of us there were, but seeing the line stretch out behind me, it felt like a lot.
According to Rymar, we were just entering fall.
He pointed out leaves on the trees that had turned yellow, and Kanik made me aware of how many more there were on the ground now than when I'd first come to Lorsa.
Zasen made sure I didn't miss the birds and other animals - mostly because Holly wanted to chase them.
All of it made this trip much better than the last, but the best part was my boots. With my feet properly covered, I had no problem keeping up with everyone else. Then again, I was a lot stronger now than I'd been back then.
We stopped once for a meal, but it was quick. Our food was made from dried things that could be carried with us rather than hunted, and our break was based on the horses. Once they were rested enough, we set off again.
Zasen said we were making good time. Rymar grumbled about how much he'd hurt tomorrow.
Kanik got to take breaks in the back of a cart.
He didn't want to, but when Rymar and Zasen insisted, I joined in, and that seemed to convince him.
To make him feel better, I made Holly ride with him so she wouldn't wear herself out.
Eventually, the sun set, but we all kept walking.
A few hours after that, Nyco called a halt, saying there was water for the horses.
Immediately, groups broke off, picking places to set their "camps.
" I didn't know what they meant until Rymar dragged me off the road and into the trees.
Together, we scoped out a flat spot, and then he taught me how to set up a safe place to light a fire.
Then Drozel called out, "I need volunteers for the watch! I'd like five for each shift, and we can do either three or four shifts."
"Me," Kanik said.
"Oh, me!" I said, lifting my hand up simply because Kanik had.
Drozel pointed at me. "No."
"Why not?" I snapped. "I have Holly too!"
"And we'll need you rested tomorrow. Ayla, you're the one who knows Moles. I'd rather you weren't too tired and miss something obvious."
Since plenty of others had put their hands up or called out, Drozel had more than enough volunteers. Zasen stole Holly, saying she needed to help him catch dinner, and Rymar went to gather stones for the fire.
I got to kick the leaves away. Not only for the fire, but also for spots where we'd sleep. I dreaded that part, but only because I'd gotten used to soft beds and thick covers. Yet thinking back to my first trip here, I piled up the leaves for our pillows, knowing we'd need them.
Soon enough, Rymar was back, and he showed me how to get a fire going.
Zasen returned with Holly just as it was blazing, and we put a pair of rabbits on the fire.
One, Zasen carried over to Kanik, saying he was going to share with him.
The other was for Rymar, Holly, and me. While we ate, I looked around at all the dozens of little lights glowing between trees.
"If the Moles were out here, they'd see this," I told Rymar.
He chuckled. "Yep, but if the Moles were out here, Holly and Demon would both let us know. The horses too, most likely."
I nodded and took another bite, but in the silhouette of one of those fires, I saw a trio cuddling together and kissing. The man in the middle turned first one way, then the other. It was calm and caring, not passionate, but nice to see.
Looking around us, I realized everyone had clustered up. Not just at their own fires, but sitting close. A man clasped a woman's shoulder, nodding like they were talking about something. Down by the road, a pair hugged, slapping each other's backs in the process.
Kanik often said Dragons were made for touching, and I was starting to see what he meant.
Dozens of small contacts were everywhere I looked.
From an arm over a shoulder to the pair lying by their fire, locked together in a way I was sure I shouldn't look at too long.
Friends, families, and everything in between, Dragons really did touch all the time.
"What?" Rymar asked when I was quiet for too long.
"I've been in Lorsa a while now," I explained, "and yet there are some things that are more obvious out here."
"Like?" he asked.
I flicked a finger at the couple embracing on the ground. "When there are no walls to hide behind, everything is on view," I said, "and Dragons don't seem ashamed of much."
"Reapers are even worse," he said. "Personally..." And he paused to let out a long yawn. "...I can't imagine the isolation you grew up with."
"Me either - anymore."
Which made him smile at me. "Well, I'm exhausted." Then he chuckled. "And I do make a better pillow than the leaves. This time, you can even understand that."
"Is that what you tried to tell me on the walk back?"
"And something about there being wild animals out in the forest, you were safer with me, and yeah, that you could use me as a pillow, but I realized that was not going to happen."
"Not then," I agreed, "but tonight it sounds perfect."
I'd already laid down a blanket to sleep on. He claimed that, then used his over the top. The night air had already chilled a lot, and I had a feeling it would get worse before dawn. So once he was comfortable, I scooted over and slid in beside him, the same way I had with Zasen.
Rymar's arm curled around my back, holding me against him, and then he leaned in and kissed the top of my hair. "I still have a stinger," he said softly. "And I will use it to keep you safe."
But when a solid form flopped down against both my back and his arm, I had to add, "And I have a dog. I'm not scared this time, Rymar."
"Good, because you are comfortable to curl up with." And he flicked his tail over his leg, twining it around my ankle gently. "Good night."
"Holly, guard," I breathed, then snuggled into his shoulder and let my eyes close.
I was almost asleep when movement made my eyes jerk open. A dark shape was looming over us, lowering itself down, but Holly hadn't even stirred. Blinking once, I realized it was Zasen, and he slid in behind Rymar, but when he lifted the blanket to get under it, Rymar murmured a warning.
"I left mine for Kanik," Zasen whispered. "Both of you, go back to sleep."
I closed my eyes again, and then a second arm reached across my body. When it wiggled, I felt Holly shift slightly, and I realized he was petting her, but this? This was nice. This was something I could get used to.
Something I wanted more of.
I slept hard like that. I also didn't miss my pillow, because Rymar's chest was even better. Yet a soft woof from Holly made the three of us wake quickly the next morning. Zasen sat up, letting in a rush of frigid air in the process.
"Breakfast," Drozel said, dropping a rabbit beside our fire. "Xav and Demon caught enough for everyone last night."
And from the other side of the fire, Kanik grumbled, "I was sleeping, asshole."
"And those three look warmer," Drozel teased. "Get up, all of you. We leave soon."
I moaned, not wanting to brave the cold air out there, so Rymar tucked his side of the blanket around me. That took the piece Zasen had been using, forcing him to get up. Then, one by one, we each headed into the woods to find a spot to relieve ourselves.
By the time we were done, so was the food. Holly got the parts we didn't want, seeming pleased with this arrangement, and then it was time to go again.
The sun was just turning the sky from blue to gold when I saw the first sign of devastation.
It was simply a tree branch between the trees, but the once-green leaves were wilting quickly.
After that, there were more signs: scuffs in the leaves like something heavy had been moved, blood, and when we were close enough, a pile of bodies in black.
We'd reached the Reapers' camp.
The boundary was marked by dogs - and the people controlling them. So many dogs! Brown ones, black ones, and even white ones! They were everywhere, and some had more than one color. All of them barked as we passed, and Holly barked back.
Not far past that, I finally saw their home. It wasn't a town, but it was so much more than a mere camp. For me, that word described how we'd slept last night. This? It was a much smaller version of Lorsa.
"Okay!" Yrena called out, moving her horse into our path as people began grouping up around her and the carts headed for the open space in the middle of everything.
"The well's in the middle here. Infirmary is the long building over there.
Kitchen is that one." And she pointed at another structure.
"Take the supplies where they need to be, and I'll find the chief! "
"We got carts!" someone called.
"Untack the horses."
"I can use more medics over here!"
The calm and peaceful walk had just ended, and what was before me was complete chaos, but it was the sort I knew. Clasping Zasen's arm to make sure he knew I was okay, I headed for where that person had called for medics.
The structure was open, with big posts holding a roof over an area without walls. Tables had been placed under it, and people rested on top of them. I could see bandages and blankets, but everything here was stained somehow.
Brown was the most common. It was on the packed dirt beneath me, the walls of the buildings I passed, and the clothes of the Reapers I saw. Under that roof, I also saw red. Too much red, and I had a feeling that couldn't be good.
"Holly, heel," I ordered, then pushed into the cluster of people with the wounded. "What do we need? I can help."
A slight man caught my arm. "Can you sew wounds?"
"Yes," I assured him.
"Suture is over there," he said, pointing. "We're running low on water."
So I looked back where I'd come from. "Rymar! We need someone to haul water!"
"On it!" Rymar assured me.
Then, "Zasen! They need medics!"
"One second," he yelled back.
"Now!" I snapped, then headed for the suture. "Do we have medicine?"
"We're out," a burly lady said. "Give them a leash or belt to bite. Nothing here is fatal."
"Ethanol or alcohol?" I asked next.
"Disinfectant's over there," a third person said, pointing.
Grabbing a bottle of that and a spool of suture, I headed for the first patient - and stopped hard.
This? I'd expected this to be just like the infirmary, but it wasn't. The person lying before me was a boy, probably nine or ten years old, and his arm was open from his shoulder to his wrist. The bandage wasn't holding, but the bleeding had stopped.
"Hey," I said gently as I moved to check on him. "What's your name?"
"Bralen," he mumbled.
"Okay, I'm going to look at your arm, okay?" I bent, gently removing the wrapping that had clearly been done in a panic by someone who didn't know medicine. "I'm going to go slow, so you tell me if it hurts, okay?"
The kid nodded bravely, but today, bravely wouldn't do. The Moles had done this. They'd come here and hurt children. Nothing about this was righteous. Nothing! But that didn't mean I had to make it worse.