His One and Only

Chapter 13

Mira somehow managed to sleep but didn't feel any better when she woke up. Yesterday's events were clouded by pain. Her mouth, throat, and stomach still ached and burned. She sat up slowly with a groan but winced because even groaning made it worse.

She was unsure of the time and crawled to the front of the tent to open it. The sun glared down on her. The sun's harsh rays were blocked by a figure approaching her. It was Xander and he had a cup in his hand.

"Hey, drink this. It might help." He handed her a cup of tea with Aloe Vera mixed in again.

It was cold and went down a lot better than last night. Last night's hot tea gave both relief and pain at the same time but there was no other option.

"We are actually just about to finish packing up and will head out shortly. I'm sorry but we have to reach this village by lunch. There were reports of it being attacked and raided."

Mira just nodded and he helped her out of the truck so they could take down the tent and load it up.

"Do you want to ride in the truck? It may be a bit uncomfortable on my lap but it will block out the elements."

Mira again shook her head and pointed to her blanket. She would rather lay down in the bed of the truck than be cramped in it with four Grizzlies.

"Understood." He walked away with work to do.

Mira ended up in the bed of the truck with Xander in the back with her. Her stomach ached so bad she didn't want to eat anything. Xander convinced her pain killers would help her but other than that she refused everything else offered. The weather was quite soft and warm since Autumn was creeping in. She ended up passing out cocooned in her blanket.

Several hours later they reached their destination. Mira sat up and looked around. This village was much smaller than the main one. The woods were less thicker as well. She could see a few cabins here and there. A couple cubs were running around and playing with each other. Seeing little kids brought a small smile to her face.

There was definant evidence of a raid here. A couple cabins had broken windows and doors. There was an off-road truck but it was chard black from being set on fire. There was also a small building that had been burnt to ashes and only the black frame of it remained.

A few Grizzlies approached them from the village. The oldest one stepped forward and opened his arms. "Greetings. I am Luis, the Governor of this village. I am so relieved to see that you indeed got our distress call and came to help."

* Author's note* (Whenever Grizzlies speak to each other it is in Old Norse unless I specify otherwise.)

Xander walked up. "Greetings Luis. I am Commander Smoke. Yes we received your call four days ago and immediately set out to respond."

Governor Luis bowed his head slightly. "It's an honor to have the Commander himself come to our aid. We have much to discuss but first you must be hungry. We have lunch prepared for you."

The men started to follow them but Xander turned back for Mira. "Hey, we are going to eat lunch. Do you want to try and eat something?"

Despite the constant pain she could feel her body was a little weak due to lack of food. She really didn't want to eat but there was no other option so she nodded.

Together they walked to the center of the village where some women were cooking food over open fires. Why do they almost always eat outside? Why is it always in the center of the village? Ugh! So many questions but I can't even talk now. I will find out soon no matter what it takes.