By: ToeClaws
| As the first rays of sunlight inched their way along the bushes and sand of the land, Eric was stirring. For some reason, he had waked early, but as he watched the glow of daylight fill the windows, he was content to lie in the arms of a strange newfound partner. A part of him still fought to understand why… or how for that matter, but that part was quickly shrinking away in the face of the soulfulness of Rothar. He thought about the strange feeling; Wonder if anyone else thinks like this? He laughed in a whisper. Guess checking the Net is out of the question.
| As the sunlight stretched out more from the Windows and began pushing back the shadows of the cover, he saw the damage his actions had caused the night before. Rothar’s wooden table lay on its side by the wall - a giant crack down its centre. The wall itself had several big cracks around the point of impact on the hardened clay. Holy shit! I did that? The strange part to Eric was that he didn’t remember exactly how he had done it, only that he did.
| “Practice shall help you to tame your Jantra, Eric.” Rothar’s soft voice beside his ear startled Eric.
| “Arg! How long have you been awake?” He shuffled over to face the Seeker, chest to chest.
| Rothar smiled ran his claws through Eric’s curly hair. “Long enough to have felt your surprise and concern over the results of your actions last night.” He patted Eric’s head, and rose to his clawed feet. Heading over to the area where the table had been, he picked his leather loincloth (or whatever they were) up and put it on over his alluring middle. “Today shall prove a very busy day, I think. The sky is birthing a storm, and we have much to gather and prepare for before it comes.”
| Shuffling to his feet, Eric picked up his leather loincloth and dressed as well. “Err… how can you be sure? It’s pretty sunny out already.”
| Smiling, Rothar brushed Eric’s cheek. “I will show you, but first we shall have our fill of… breakfast, as you call it.”
| The meal was delicious again. As picky an eater as he thought he was, Eric was surprised that he had not disliked any Zagoran dishes yet - even some of the ones that didn’t look or smell very attractive. According to Geff, all he had to do was try one of Waverek’s cooking attempts to think otherwise.
| After they finished their meal and jie, they stepped outside the cover, and to Eric’s surprise, he saw a few clouds! All his days on Sioleth thus far, he couldn’t remember a cloudy day.
| Rothar raised his chin and snout to them, closing his eyes to a narrow slit. For a moment, he stood there in silence, then softly spoke. “Can you feel them?”
| Feel clouds? Eric starred at Rothar a moment in puzzlement, and revisited his gaze to the sky. Relaxing his thoughts, he took a deep breath and let his senses open up. Nothing seemed to happen. He could understand feeling another being, but clouds? It didn’t make sense. Rothar’s voice cut into his thoughts.
| “Reach out your being as if you soared amidst them. Feel the weight of the water drops pressing down and yearning to break free of their sky clad binding. Let yourself become a part of the storm that grows within them.” Rothar’s pale eyes slid closed, and he opened himself up completely to the sky above him.
| Rather than ask any other questions, Eric closed his eyes as well, and tried to imagine flying amidst the clouds - feeling the mist of them soaking him through as he did. The feeling was suddenly there - in fact, there so strongly that he was puzzled at how he could have missed it the first time! He could feel the storm building within the clouds, swirling around and rising with the morning heat. He let out a shocked whisper “By Sioleth…. I feel it!”
| Rothar’s eyes opened slowly and he turned to look at Eric. The human stood with eyes closed, smiling as the new sensations washed over him for the first time. Rothar stifled a chuckle, and admired instead. He thought back to his days as a pupil of Sarieth, wondering if the same look was on his face when he had first felt the clouds.
| “It will let down on us by late morning… won’t it?” Eric opened his eyes and looked at Rothar, seeing the big Seeker smiling back at him.
| “Yes it will, and rather intensely at that. As Seekers, we give warning to the village of such weather so that preparations can be made.”
| “Preparations?” Eric looked confused. “Exactly how bad are the storms here anyway?”
| “The rains come scarcely, but intensely. We reside on high ground, but much of the lower ground that surrounds us will be flooded. If it rains enough, the village will be cut off for a day or two.” Rothar placed his big clawed hand on Eric’s shoulder. “We need gather supplies whilst we are able. “
| Eric cringed. “Yikes. Well, let’s not waste any time then. I’ll go wake Geff and Waverek - they can help spread the news through the council, then maybe Fessar and Zio can help us gather supplies.”
| “I would rather have Waverek join us instead of Fessar - his knowledge of herbs is much better, and time is of the essence. “ Rothar pointed at a far cover. “That is Zio and Leethan’s cover. I will tell Massic and meet you at the village entrance.”
| Whoa… Zio and Leethan are a couple!? Wow… Zio’s going to be a father soon! Or, mother… umm… parent anyway. Eric nodded, not voicing his surprise. “I’ll head to Geff and Waverek’s first. Heh… our eyes would only freak Fessar out anyway. See you soon.” Eric turned and began a brisk walk towards the first cover.
***
| The village was soon alive with activity as the Zagoran’s prepared for the coming storm. Graven was busy rolling huge clay bowls out into the square in the centre of the village. They were to catch as much fresh water as possible, saving the others having to fetch it from the nearby river later, then go through the process of purifying it. Others were busy dusting off the covers and using brushes to apply the special waterproofing sap that had been used on the leather tent covers Eric had used to catch dew several days earlier.
| By the thorn flanked village entrance stood Eric, Rothar, Zio and Waverek, who halted their walk momentarily as Geff trotted up to them. “Wait brethren!” He came up to them as they turned to meet him. “Massic said he will see to any work in the village and wanted me aid your efforts instead.”
| They all started walking again. Rothar nodded. “Good - the more hands we have, the more we can gather before the sky opens up its wrath.” Each of them carried a large leather pouch, except for Eric, who took the backpack from his old world. They walked only a short time, before turning down a small path that trailed steeply down the side of an embankment. As they reached the bottom and cleared the bushes, Eric’s eyes went wide with wonder. Before them was a giant field of plants and grasses of dozens of varieties and colours. Rothar smiled at Eric’s look and announced “Here lie the tribe’s planting fields; comprised of a hundred varieties of plants, herbs, and spices that have gathered in seeds over generations.”
| For a moment, Eric stood still, looking slowly from one end to another. The field was quite large, and filled with a rainbow of colours and smells. It looked like a botanical garden gone mad! “It’s incredible! I’ve always wondered where all the supplies came from. I assumed you foraged for what you needed.”
| The others chuckled. Geff patted his shoulder. “We did, in a way. Everything you see before you was gathered over many generations by other Zagorans. Seekers, mostly, in their travels find new food and herbs to use, and sometimes other Zagorans discover something useful as well. Whenever we do, we harvest the plant or its seeds and add it to our fields.”
| Rothar nodded “Aye. The many small clay jars along my far wall contain all the seeds needed to create this field where so ever we may travel.” He turned and looked out over the field then back to the others. “Our greatest needs are food and herbs. The need for spices and other conveniences are minor for today, and will not take long. Zio, head to the far corner to gather an assortment of spices, but make sure you gather a good number of dailnish root - we are low in supply of them. The rest of us will work our way up from the near corner and gather food and herbs.”
| Everyone went quickly to work. Eric remained close to Rothar, who showed him what each item was, how to tell if it was good, and how to harvest it. Some of the plants were similar to ones that Eric had in his old world, and others were completely alien to him. The one amusement that was provided in the hot morning’s labour was the unending playful arguing of Waverek and Geff.
| “Strange how you know so much of herbs, spices and food yet cannot form a good meal of them.” Geff huffed.
| “At least I know not to block the wrath of my enemy with my eye.”
| “Oh yes, your chest was a much more effective method.”
| “Humph… pity they did not take out that wise cracking tongue of yours instead. “
| Geff grinned back playfully. “Oh come now, you would miss it.”
| Unable to help chuckling, Eric waved his arms “Oh brother, enough already! Like I need to hear stuff like that!” Waverek had a sudden bashful look from Geff’s last comment. Eric shook his head. “Besides, if we’re going to beat this storm, we need to keep our brains on the task at hand. Looking back to Rothar, Eric found another bashful look as well, and wondered if Geff’s comment had touched another of Rothar’s shy nerves.
| Before long, the group had worked their way toward one another, and filled the sacks to a bulging state with supplies. On leaving the fields, Geff and Rothar had to help Eric ascend the steep trail - Eric’s simple sandals lacked the biting grip of the Zagoran toe claws (of which he was quite happy to watch at work).
| By the time they returned to the village, the sky had darkened considerably. The slight breeze of the morning had given way to an eerie stillness broken only the business of the village. It was decided that the supplies were to be sorted at Geff and Waverek’s, so everything was quickly brought to their cover. The group parted and went about preparing their covers for the rain.
| “We must mend the wall where they table has cracked it, then see to waterproofing the outer walls” said Rothar, as he and Eric walked towards their cover. “You can mend them, since you need to learn how.”
| Eric furrowed his brow “I know I damaged the wall and have every intention of fixing it, but I’m not sure there’s time enough to fill it over with clay - I mean, it won’t even have time to dry.”
| Rothar laughed and his pale eyes flickered over to Eric’s. “A Seeker need not worry of working clay with his hands for he works it with will by jantra.” He gestured around him “All our dwellings were so made.”
| They reached the cover as Rothar spoke, opened the large door, and entered. Eric had a look of puzzlement on him. “But how is that possible - I mean every time you use jantra, it takes energy from you, doesn’t it? Wouldn’t it have taken a lot to make a village!?”
| “You are partially right, Eric. Remember our brief talk of jantra before leaving on the journey that announced you? Jantra is a vast thing that draws on one’s strengths differently. To manipulate the non-living requires little effort. To bring death to a form of life requires a great amount and effort. To alter life into another state requires the most of us. To create life, is impossible.” The Seeker’s pale eyes held Eric’s gently. “Each basic level of usage is governed by a set of unbreakable rules which can deny the wielder of jantra everything, if he misuses it. Jantra can end life within a life, for example, the hair that adorned your cheeks, or an illness within one’s body. It cannot, however, be used to destroy all life.” Rothar’s brow lowered a moment in thought. “I suppose, however, that you are not bound by that rule, by the nature of what you are.”
| “What would happen if you were to end a life with jantra - like a Hethren?” Eric blinked and looked at the Seeker wonderingly.
| “Jantra would wink out in an instant; the brevity of its dispatch leaving my body bathed in a burning sensation. After it subsided, my ability to wield jantra would be forever gone, and as a punishment for breaking his law, Dar Souljeth would leave me blind.” Rothar sighed, remembering the writings.
| Eric wondered if it had ever been attempted before. “Is that written in the Sabvre, or did it actually happen?”
| “Both. It is written in the Sabvre as a statement of law and fact, but it was also once tried a great many seasons ago. The story is well known; a young Zagoran named Teo, training to be a Seeker, decided to use jantra against an old foe known as the Bilathe. They came before the Hethren, in case you are wondering. His intentions were pure, but he was foolish to defy Dar Souljeth’s word. He writhed in agony for much of the night after his attempt, and when it finally subsided, his eyes were a dull white, and he was completely blind. His story has prevented any attempts since.” Rothar placed his hand on Eric’s Shoulder. “You are the only one that is not bound by Dar Souljeth’s laws, Eric.”
| For a long moment, Eric was silent, considering the weight of his destiny. He forced a smile at Rothar’s concerned gaze and patted Rothar’s chest. “I’m fine. Lets continue - I think I heard a clap of thunder in the distance.”
| Rothar nodded. “Of course. As I said, using jantra to manipulate that which is non-living requires less effort, and incurs no penalties. It requires only the focus of thought that was needed when you lit the candle, for example.” Gently taking Eric’s hands, Rothar lifted them to the wall and placed their palms on the cracked surface. “Physical contact makes it much easier at first. Clear your mind and concentrate. Like the candle, you must feel your goal in your thoughts and project those intentions into the wall itself.”
| Eric nodded and took a deep breath. “Okay… here we go…” He closed his eyes and concentrated, reaching for the strange feeling of jantra. It came with little hesitation, and flared about his hands in an enchanting glow. He concentrated on feeling the wall - how thick it was, how strong, where it cracked, how it curved - he thought about every aspect of it that he could. He felt at it like he did the sky, and the feeling came to him. He was suddenly aware of everything. There were thirty seven cracks, six large, and the rest spiralled out from the others. The cover felt weakened here, penetrable. He squinted more in concentration. The damage was known, now he had to bind it.
| Binding it, however, proved to be a lot trickier. He could sense every imperfection in the wall, yet, that is exactly how the wall remained - shattered. Unknowingly, Eric was gritting his teeth with concentration. How do I make it come together!? He kept thinking of the cracks simply sealing, but it wasn’t working. Arg… no… I can feel it… damn you! He then imagined the clay becoming almost a liquid and oozing together at the break points, and suddenly, he could feel the wall beneath his fingers move. It became like a liquid, flowing easily, yet holding its shape perfectly. He sealed over all the cracks, and held his concentration to keep the wall’s rounded shape. After a moment, it was done, and he took his first breath since beginning. Panting, he looked up wearily with sweat on his brow. “There… it’s… fixed now.”
| Rothar let out a deep laugh “Yes it is, though I do not think including yourself in the structure was necessary.” His clawed finger pointed at Eric’s hands, both sunk into the hard clay wall.
| “Aw shit! “ Eric jerked at his hands, but they were in solid. He turned red in his cheeks, and started laughing.
| For a moment, the partners laughed, until a loud rumble of thunder reminded them that time was not on their side. Rothar leaned forward, smiling, and touched the wall with his hand. His jantra flared instantly about it, and Eric pulled his hands free of the suddenly liquidated wall. The red glow winked out, and the wall was hardened again. “You try too hard Eric. You are more gifted in jantra than any Seeker, yet you strain to make it bend to your will.” He looked down at Eric’s hands - the human was rubbing them as if to insure they were in tact. Grinning he looked back up at Eric. “Your concentration negates your physical awareness - be always mindful of your body lest it land you in more trouble than that.”
| Nodding his head and letting out another chuckle, Eric agreed. “It’s strange… when I’m startled or worried, it comes so easily to do whatever I want, but for other things, it seems like I have to force it.”
| “No… you believe you must force it. It does take mindfulness of the task at hand, but it will come to you easily if you let it once you have sighted your goal.” Another rumble sounded, closer this time. Rothar turned to look out one of the narrow windows. “The sky darkens quickly - we must hurry and coat the cover walls to make them more resistant to it.”
| The Seeker rose and went to the far end of the cover to retrieve a large clay pot. It was sealed with a lid and wax, which Rothar broke away with his claws. “This is the same sap used to water proof the leather hides you so cleverly caught the dew with. We must spread it over the cover’s outer walls.”
| Eric closed his eyes a moment, and felt outwards to the storm. He whispered a gasp as he felt it - massive in size and power, and bearing directly toward the village. He eyes shot open “There’s not enough time Rothar - I can feel it right on top of us!”
| “There will be time enough for me. Come!” He opened the door and walked out, Eric right behind him. He handed the jar to Eric and stepped between the cover and Eric. “When I tell you, throw the contents at the cover all before you so that you empty all of it at once.” Eric nodded, not quite understanding, but trusting whatever Rothar had in mind. Rothar stepped back slightly to make a path for the sap, and extended both arms; one towards Eric, and the other towards the cover. Lightning flashed in the sky above and illuminated the Seeker’s sleek form; reflecting in his pale eyes like fire. “Now!” A red glow flared about Rothar and Eric heaved the contents of the jar towards the cover. It was caught by Rothar’s jantra and flung around the entire cover in a thin sheet in less than a second!
| It happened so fast that Eric leapt in surprise. The cover suddenly shined dully as the sap instantly dried in place. Another lightning bolt lit up the darkening sky, and the crack the followed came quickly. Eric looked up at the low hanging clouds. “Good, let’s not wait out here any longer!”
| “Agreed.” Rothar motioned towards the door, and Eric went in, with Rothar right behind him. It banged shut, and Rothar fixed the bolt across it to secure it. “Now begins the wait until it passes.” Rothar went to his bedding pelt, and sat down in his usual Zen-like way, and patted the bit of pelt before him. “Come, I will show you how to reach out across the land to feel for the Hethren - we might as well make good this extra time.”
***
| The storm had taken a while to build. Lightning flashed madly for the first hour, and then the rains finally let out on the parched land. Eric found it difficult to concentrate on sensing anything beyond the deafening pounding of the rain on the cover’s top. Between Rothar’s instructions, he would glance out the window only to have the view blocked by what seemed a wall of water. After a time, the floor nearest the walls darkened in wetness as the relentless rains hammered down on the sandy grounds.
| Hours passed, and though the rain slowed to a normal pour, the storm about it had not ceased, but grown as the winds and lightning raged across the land. It seemed like night outside of the cover, as the late afternoon light was scarcely able to penetrate the think clouds. The lessons now over, and Eric’s understanding of how to sense things heightened, he now reclined gently on Rothar, who held his powerful arm tenderly about Eric’s upper body. Rothar nuzzled Eric’s head in a soothing way with his snout and chin, brushing his lips often along Eric’s ears. Eric was scarcely aware of just how long they had been doing so, only that it was almost hypnotic in a way amid the patter of the rain and rumbles of thunder.
| A loud pounding on the door startled them both. Eric leapt up and went to it, sliding the bolt back while bracing it with his body against the force of the storm. Standing with a look of fear in his eyes and rain sheeting over his reptilian skin was Zio. “Zio? Why are you out in this wea…” before he finished asking the question, Eric felt the reason. “Leethan! Rothar, Leethan is in labour!”
| Rothar sprang to his feet and ran for his pouch of supplies. He grabbed it and dashed to the door. “We must go quickly.”
| They dashed out in the storm, and Eric found himself fighting just to keep his balance in the winds mucky ground. The rain hammered down on them as the crossed the village, soaking them completely from head to toe. For a moment, Eric wasn’t even sure if they were heading in the right direction, but soon the cover materialized in the rain and darkness. Zio went in quickly, and held the door steady for the others.
| As they entered the calm of the cover, Leethan was lying on his back, tail tucked under him and legs spread with his knees pointing out. His face bore a look of agony and his body glistened with moisture from the effort of bearing it. He looked up at everyone, and spoke in a strained voice to Rothar. “I am sorry Rothar… I did not think….ARGhhhhh… I did not think it would come so soon.” He threw his head back in another yell, which ended in a deep growl.
| The sound of the agonized yell made Eric shiver - it was quite unlike any he’d heard before. Rothar went to Leethan’s side and knelt there, as did Zio on the other. “Do not apologize my friend - Dar Souljeth’s way is rarely a scheduled one.” The Seeker used his clawed hand to feel gently along Leethan’s belly, checking the position of the egg and the progress of its movement.
| Eric still stood near the door, unsure of where to be or what to look at. Rothar looked up and motioned Eric to come to his side, snapping him out of his momentary confusion. As Eric knelt by Leethan, the agonized Zagoran smiled and spoke in a strained voice. “Eric... I am honoured to….Harrrrrrrmmmph… to have the Realm Walker in our cover, especially for….Haahhhhhh… this.” He finished his words, panting, looking as if he wanted to say more, but the effort required was too great.
| Smiling gently, Eric reached down and placed his hand on the bulge in Leethan’s belly. “Thank you… it’s an honour for me as well.” As last words rolled from Eric’s tongue, another contraction hit Leethan. His head tilted back and he let out another pained yelp that trailed off to a growl as the painful contractions faded. Eric left his hand sitting on resting gently on Leethan’s belly, though part of him worried that, by the way Leethan sounded, it might get bitten off.
| Rothar rose from his spot and placed a hand on Eric’s shoulder. “Come Eric - I need quickly explain some things to you. Zio, please stay at his side, I will be but a moment.” Eric rose as well, and went with Rothar to the far side of the cover where Rothar quietly began to explain some of the complexities of Zagoran birth. “I was hoping that I could explain this better in the coming days, but that is irrelevant now. Leethan is in the late stages of his egg passage. When I felt along his belly, I was checking to see that the egg was pointing its narrowest end down, which is how it must exit his body.”
| Eric looked nervously over at Leethan, who let out another long yell that trailed off to a growl, then looked back to Rothar. ‘Umm… well is it positioned right then?”
| “Yes, it is positioned perfectly and has moved slightly downward.” Rothar put his hand on Eric’s shoulder and leaned down to speak a little softer. “In order for the egg to leave his body through the klishna, his hips will soon come out of their sockets to allow for more room. When…”
| “What!?” Eric winced at the volume of his own voice and made a second effort to keep quiet. “His hips pop out of their sockets!? That’s insane! Let me guess, one of us has to use jantra to ease the pain, right?”
| Rothar shook his head. “No Eric, we cannot. It is also forbidden to use jantra to interfere with the birth of a Zagoran. All births have been natural, it is Dar Souljeth’s law, thus our way. Now, when his hip dislocates, the pain will become rather intense. Zio will likely have to change his ways from comforting to restraining Leethan. Shortly after, the egg will begin its way downward, and Leethan must keep enough mind about him to push it out.”
| “Wait… keep enough mind about him? What… is he going to go crazy or something? And I think ‘rather’ intense is a bit of an understatement!” Eric glanced back at Leethan, now panting constantly from the effort.
| Calmly, Rothar reached up from Eric’s shoulder and gently pulled Eric’s head back to his view. “He may. One of the worst things that can happen is that a Zagoran lose his mindfulness of his environment amid the pain. Birth can become very difficult then, and often fatal.” Rothar patted Eric’s cheek gently, noting the look of shock. “We will not let that happen, try not to worry. Come, we must see to him now.”
| As they moved back to their original places, Eric’s heart was pounding. Fatal!? This is nuts! He closed his eyes a moment as he squatted by Rothar’s side, trying to gain his composure in order to not make Leethan feel anymore uncomfortable than he already did.
| Leaning back, Rothar checked between Leethan’s legs to see the size of his klishna. He nodded satisfactorily and showed Eric. “Notice that his klishna has dilated considerably beyond its normal size to allow room for the egg.”
| Gingerly, Eric moved slightly to look, hoping that Leethan was not embarrassed. His klishna was definitely larger than normal, or at least than Rothar’s normally looked anyway. There was also a translucent fluid that had a slight white tinge to it leaking from the opening, and to Eric’s surprise, there was an odd, but very sweet odour in the air. Eric wasn’t sure what he should say or ask. Another contraction hit, and Leethan’s body clenched tightly, accompanied by another eerie cry and growling. As he did, some translucent fluid oozed from his klishna. Eric swallowed a lump in his throat, and was doing his best not to feel queasy.
| “The fluid you see is called nyesha. It acts as a lubricant to make the passage of the egg easier. It is also the fluid that carries the seeding provided by the klish and its fluid, nyesh.” Again Rothar reached out and used his hand to judge the progression of the egg along Leethan’s belly.
| Eric blinked, then looked up to Zio and Leethan, who didn’t seem bothered by Rothar’s words or the fact that he was staring at what was going on. It was surprising just how open and comfortable Zagoran’s were with themselves. He looked up at Rothar and simply nodded in acknowledgement, completely unsure of anything else to say.
| Leethan reared his head in another painful yell that gave the thunder outside quite a challenge. It trailed off into a low growl, and panting. As Eric sat watching, there was suddenly a popping noise, and Leethan’s hips seemed to get suddenly wider. Eric gasped as Leethan let out a bone chilling scream that trailed off to a mad hissing.
| Zio and Rothar had moved quickly to restrain the pregnant Zagoran, who was hissing and fighting them in maddened confusion. Rothar roughly took hold of the top of Leethan’s snout and pulled it so that their eyes met. The pale cyan eyes of the Seeker burned into the golden ones of Leethan, and somehow, it seemed to lesson his madness. Speaking in a loud and commanding voice, the Seeker gave out his instructions, never letting his gaze leave Leethan’s. “The passage of the egg has begun. Leethan, you must stay mindful of us, of your young, and what you are doing, do you understand?”
| The hissing subsided as Rothar spoke, and as he finished, Leethan nodded slowly, chest heaving and breathing shallow. Rothar continued “Eric, kneel here beside Leethan, and keep him focused, I will retrieve the egg as he passes it. Zio, you must keep him as still as possible.” Zio nodded, looking a mix between excited and worried. “Leethan - you must push with the contractions now, as hard as you can!”
| Switching spots with Rothar, Eric placed one hand on Leethan’s shoulder, on the other on his arm, and leaned down the best clam look he could manage. Another contraction came and Leethan reared his head back in an agonized yell. Zio quickly held him down as his he went to thrash his body in agony. Eric attempted to hold him as well, but seemed to make little difference against the powerful Zagoran muscles. Instead, he did as Rothar instructed, and tried to calm him. “Leethan… Leethan! You have to push, remember? PUSH!” Eric’s own pale gaze seemed to distract the maddened Zagoran enough that he remembered again, and with a pained effort, his body clenched again, and he sent a mighty heave along his insides, causing the egg to slide slightly downward.
| Rothar smiled and looked up at Leethan. “Good Leethan… again… PUSH!” Another mighty heave followed along with a growl of determination, and the egg slid downward a little more. As Rothar looked on, he could see a tiny sliver of its light blue shell peaking through the lips of the klishna. Another heave and growl sent a gush of nyesha out, and the egg moved ever so slightly again.
| Leethan’s shallow breathing between growls, and sweat laden body made it look almost as if he lay dying of a wound from battle. Eric used one hand to wipe away the sweat from Leethan’s brow, ready to yank it back to safety from the sharp teeth in case another contraction hit. “Good… Rothar says you’re doing good, but you have to keep going, okay? Leethan? You still with us here?” The Zagoran nodded distantly. Another contraction rocked his body, and his eyes squinted painfully as a scream erupted from him. Eric strained with both hands just to keep Leethan’s arm from causing injury to him, and leaned close to his small reptilian ear. “Leethan! Push! Use the contraction to PUSH!!”
| Leethan’s scream turned to a maddened hiss, and he pushed with all the strength he could muster. The egg slid forward in a quick movement, and lodged at the halfway point. More nyesha came, mingled with a trace of blood, and Leethan began trashing madly in pain, hissing and snapping at the two that tried to restrain him.
| By this point, Eric and Rothar were shouting to try and keep him focused. Eric could feel the worry building in Rothar - something wasn’t right, and whatever was going wrong, was driving Leethan mad. The thought was quickly shattered as another contraction hit and Leethan’s arm wrenched free of Eric’s grasp. The claws of the pained Zagoran’s hand found their way deep into Eric’s thigh, clenching in maddened fury. Letting out a painful yelp, Eric grabbed the hand as the claws buried themselves in his flesh, trying to pull it free. “Lee…. Aahhhhh… what the fuck… Leethan!! ARGHHH!!!” Rothar’s gaze shot up worriedly to Eric, but he could not move to help in case the egg moved. For Eric, there was no removing the claws – not against the Zagoran’s great strength. Eric’s irritation soared with the pain, and he growled loudly.
| As Zio looked up at Eric, strained in his own effort to restrain his mate, he was met be two pale white eyes, that glowed eerily back at him. Eric let out a hiss of his own, and wrenched free Leethan’s hand from his thigh in a spurt of blood, forcing it easily to the ground. Eric placed his other hand palm down on Leethan’s chest next to Zio’s hand, and slammed him down hard to the cover floor. Zio was motionless, watching in a mix of terror and awe as the Realm Walker held his mate effortlessly still.
| Hisses of confusion and pain sounded as Leethan whipped his head madly about, unable to move much else. Eric leaned his face close to the Zagoran’s, and spoke in a voice that seemed to counter the thunder itself. “LEETHAN!” Even Rothar jumped at the power of his partner’s voice, under the influence of Dar Souljeth’s fire. The maddened hissing trailed off, and Leethan’s golden gaze locked with the eerie white eyes of the Realm Walker. “You will push… NOW! Is that perfectly clear?!” Leethan nodded quickly with a pained cry, and closed his eyes. His body quivered and his every powerful muscle seemed to clench to an incredible hardness. His head leaned back and he cried out a long agonized yowl.
| The egg moved, almost unnoticeably at first, then a little more as the pained Zagoran’s body bared its every vein in the effort. In a sudden gush of nyesha and blood, the egg slid free into the gentle waiting hands of Rothar. Leethan’s body fell completely limp; Zio catching his head as it fell weakly back. Eric’s pale white eyes shined for a moment longer, then flickered out, back to a pale cyan. He slumped weakly back, clutching his bloodied thigh.
| The silence that would have ensued was broken only by the pounding of the rain and thunder outside of the cover walls. Inside, Zio, Leethan and Eric lay panting from near exhaustion, while Rothar carefully used a cloth from his bag to wipe clean the light blue egg. Leethan raised his head weakly, and whispered with great effort. “Is… is it…al…”
| Rothar’s pale gaze shifted and his smiled gently. “Yes… the egg is unharmed. You have Eric to thank, for without him, I fear it may not have been so. Be silent now - rest. We shall clean you and tend the egg.”
| Weakly, Leethan reached out and clutched Eric’s arm, speaking in a strained voice. “Eric… I… if…” A tear streamed down his snout as he fought for the words to express his gratitude. “…Thank you… I… I am sorry for what I did… I…”
| For a moment, Eric hesitated, feeling the throbbing pain in his thigh as the Zagoran spoke. Painfully leaning forward a little, Eric placed his hand on his snout, gently silencing him. “Shhhhh - it was an honour. Rest now, and don’t worry about what you did - you couldn’t help it. I’m sorry for… well… losing my temper.” He patted Leethan’s shoulder and smiled. “Congratulations my friend.”
| Zio released the last of his tension and worry in a relieved laugh, and clasped Eric’s forearm warmly. “Thank you - our cover is forever yours Eric.”
| Rothar rose slowly, and brought the cleaned egg to Zio. As he placed it into the new parent’s hands, he rested his own on it, and asked Eric to do the same. “May the light of Dar Souljeth shine bright on you to light your path, and forever keep you from the consuming darkness.”
| The words were warming, but what surprised Eric was the feeling. Through Rothar’s hand flowed the very soul that seemed the heart of a Zagoran. The basis of all that they were washed over the new egg, and winked out. He wondered if the unhatched child inside could sense it.
| Reaching away, Rothar met Zio’s golden eyes with his pale ones. “As the ground is wet, you must keep the young one close to your warmth. When the dryness and heat return, we shall make a nest.”
| “Nest?” Eric winced as he shifted around, holding one hand tightly to his thigh to stop the bleeding.
| For a moment, Rothar furrowed a brow at him, then smiled. “Ah, my apologies - I neglected to tell Eric of the final stage of life for the egg. As you might remember, there is but a quarter moon until the young one will emerge from the egg, but until that time, the egg must be kept warm and protected, usually by the warmth of the sandy ground.”
| Eric blinked. “Ah… okay. H…How do you know when it’s going to hatch?”
| Chuckling, Rothar shook his head. “I will explain soon, but we mush finish our tasks here.” Rothar looked down at Eric’s thigh, still oozing blood from the claw wound. “The first of which will be to bind that wound.” He crouched by Eric’s side, and placed his hand lightly over the wound, which still made Eric wince. A red glow flared along the Seeker’s clawed hand, and Eric could feel the wound closing with an odd tickling sensation. In a moment, it was done. Rothar lifted his hand away, leaving only the blood to stain the unbroken surface of Eric’s leg. “Now Eric, from my sack, retrieve the other cloths and Pulralin - we shall clean and dress Leethan.”
| The remainder Rothar and Eric’s stay was more systematic. They quickly and gently cleaned Leethan’s worn body, wiping away the pool of nyesha, blood, and sweat. Rothar carefully applied the Pulralin to Leethan’s Klishna, and set his legs straight out before him. Before leaving, Rothar handed Zio a small container of the Pulralin salve. “This must be washed away and applied each day until he has healed. Do not let him walk for at least two days, until his hips have had a chance to return to full strength.”
| Two days… ha… that would take a human weeks! Amazing. Eric smiled warmly, and said his good-bye’s and well wishes, as did Rothar, before leaving the new parents in peace, and returning to their cover in the diminishing storm. All the ferocity of nature seemed somehow pale by comparison to what had just happened. Eric couldn’t help but smile along the muddy walk home.
To Be Continued...
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