Bird of a Cage [BoW 4]

Chapter 17

Every able man went into the forest to search for their possible guest. Yuin sat next to Taidra as they watched the cameras for the area. None of the monitors showed anything unusual, but Taidra's leg shook as he waited for more information. His AI span theories and potential outcomes of this. Most of them ended with them executing the poor sod they found. That wouldn't endear them to the K'nairi.

War didn't change. People died every day fighting for their cause. Or from the crime of living on the opposite side's land. The Dmar slaughtered civilians. The Namya didn't. In battle, everyone was fair game - one would slaughter any age or gender if they wore enemy colours or raised their blade against yours. Killing someone outside of that sat wrong in Taidra's chest—especially one with wings.

"Cetol expanded his field," Yuin said, unnaturally still. He sat like a statue, eyes locked on the monitor in the centre. He waited with Taidra, the tension in his shoulders the same, for something to happen. A sword hung above their heads, ready to land.

"There is a chance the link connected before he activated it," Taidra let his AI spin out worst-case scenarios, as unlikely as it was.

If the k'nairi woke up connected, feathers would have appeared on the horizon. Instead, the skies remained clear of wings and fog settled in the valley. It clung to the edges of the camera and set everyone on edge as they moved through the white and green.

"If they wake now, they won't be able to," Yuin said, his voice not allowing anything else. A now cold cup of coffee sat on the desk. Wiljam remained asleep, but Yuin couldn't afford to sleep when something endangered the base. "We can't keep a soldier here. We can't fulfil the accords to their treatment."

"The accords were revoked."

"You'd deny a k'nairi flight?"

Taidra winced and shook his head. "Stating a fact, not insisting that we attempt to follow them. Cetol isn't strong enough to act as a guard if they attempt to fly away. We can't let a k'nairi prisoner fly safely. We'd either need to transfer them to one of our sister bases or," He paused partly because he didn't want to say the words, partially because the heavens had opened up and rain poured in the valley.

[Boss?]

"Keep searching for now. If it doesn't let up, we'll pause for the day," Yuin replied. Tech distributed the command across all the groups, using technology designed from resonating stones. The tech was similar to how the k'nairi's link's magic worked. "We can't transfer him."

Yuin wanted more options. Taidra didn't have them.

"Refusal of flight would require us to provide comfort and care. We can clip their wings, but the mental toll that not flying creates combined with the lack of link might make it kinder to end it," Taidra said with his voice low. He knew which feathers to cut. His aunt taught him.

"But they'd live."

"Containing them would be hard regardless. We can cut their feathers and file down their talons, but k'nairi are stronger than us. You've seen Cetol when we need people to move heavy things. The man's a twig, but he can lift far more than his human counterparts," Taidra said, a whisper of something in his ear - a false memory of Tai'ray murmuring dark promises of damage repaid.

Yuin didn't speak, considering Taidra's words. The lens of one of the cameras shifted. Taidra sat up, AI running numbers. The bush moved, and a monkey jumped out, screeching loudly. Taidra grimaced and lowered the volume of the thing, his head pounding in his chest.

The forest held many animals. The searchers had to remain vigilant about dangers, and so did he. Even if he was glad not to go out in this case. His leg kept him confined to the base. He wanted to, he wanted to so badly, but the dense jungle made it practically impossible for him to move through. The thick undergrowth, the plants and the vines were all a trip hazmat and getting back up hurt more than going down.