Ortai Legacy: Arrival

7.1 - Grassland (M)

Mar'kost skipped a step as the last trace of Liza's mind left him. Every fiber of his being wanted to turn around and check on her, but she would undoubtedly be as healthy as she had been a few moments ago. The mimic and graxi would protect her from the few threats that could survive so close to the Source.

His keen ears picked up the scraping footsteps of an injured reaver. It would've been safer to take a less direct route and avoid the monster, but he couldn't stand to leave Liza alone for any longer than necessary. It wasn't as if a reaver could seriously injure him when he was in this form; he could match their speed and exceed their strength. The butcher mimic, on the other hand, was the most terrifying thing he'd ever faced. Without Liza's aid, he wouldn't have been able to incapacitate it, much less destroy it.

The scent of petrichor mixed with the cool, stale air of the ship. That was unfortunate; Duskfeather had probably headed home as soon as it started raining. Mar'kost would have to be away from Liza for longer than he'd expected. He picked up speed and soon reached a room with a ladder leading up to the exit hatch.

Distant voices made him pause at the bottom of the ladder. Cocking his head, he pricked his ears until he could identify the voices of two of his housemates.

"It's been almost a day." Raeve's high-pitched voice was undercut by the nervous buzzing of her wings.

"He knows what he's doing." Cadmus's deep tones usually conveyed confidence, but he didn't seem certain of anything at the moment.

"He collapsed before running off."

"Did he?" He sounded nearly as nervous as Raeve.

Mar'kost sprinted up the ladder to a stone passage angled steeply upward. At the top of the tunnel, a grass mat blocked a hole in the wall. Gravity threatened to pull him back into the ship as his claws scrabbled against stone and wooden beams. With a great deal of effort, he reached the top and paused on a small ledge before the grass mat. Raeve and Cadmus quieted as he stepped around the mat, into the late morning sunlight.

A flash of iridescent blue-black foreshadowed Raeve crashing into Mar'kost's front. Teal antennae twitching, she threw her four segmented arms around his neck and buzzed gossamer wings.

After a quick survey of the towering grass surrounding them to ensure they were alone, Mar'kost returned to his true form. Immediately, he sensed the colony of harmless mites living in Raeve's antennae, the bacteria spotting her carapace, and an unfortunate speck of fecal matter on one of her four hands--presumably from petting a drykon. Enough practice had made it second nature to put on a neutral expression as he gingerly removed her arms from his neck. As soon as he stopped touching her, he no longer sensed the details of her exoskeleton's microbiome.

Part of him wanted to chastise her for crossing a line he'd verbalized several times before, but he supposed he could let it slide this one time. After all, she had thought he was in serious trouble.

"Oh, sorry." She flitted an arm's length away before landing.

Cadmus shifted his crimson-scaled wings and tail. "What happened, Mar'kost?"

He wasn't entirely sure what he should say. He'd told Cadmus very little about Liza and told Raeve nothing at all—since she would undoubtedly grow jealous of a woman who had near-constant access to his attention. Anything he said would seem alarmingly sudden to both of them, no matter how he explained it. He might as well explain the situation as concisely as possible.

"I've made a shifter friend who's... ill. For her health, she has to remain in the dungeon most of the time, but I'd like her to rest at the ranch for a day or two. Would that be alright?"

Cadmus rocked back on his heels as Raeve's wings drooped. They exchanged bewildered expressions before Cadmus spoke.

"This friend of yours, can she shift?"

Mar'kost shook his head. "She doesn't look like a typical shifter, but her... hair does."

"Her hair?" Cadmus stared at the feathers adorning Mar'kost's head.

"Yes..." He winced. "In truth, you would have to see her to fully understand. All I can say is that she would need to remain in the house while she's visiting."

A hint of recognition sparked in his eyes. "So long as she's careful, she can stay. You need help gettin' her up here?"

"She's not so ill that she can't walk, but I appreciate the thought. All I really need is a metal flask and a full-coverage cloak."

"And clothes for yourself," Raeve muttered dejectedly.

Mar'kost extended his senses and detected a Grassland drykon nearby. It appeared to be his mount, but it was far enough that he couldn't detect any details beyond the rough shape. "Is Duskfeather around? She has my clothes and a flask."

"Yep." With a whistle, Cadmus called the muscular quadruped into view. A second, nearly identical beast came with Duskfeather, and he mounted it. "I'll fetch a cloak."

"Thank you." He looked to Raeve, expecting her to accompany Cadmus.

She made no move to do so. "I'll wait here."

With a curt nod, Cadmus rode off into the grass.

Already dreading Raeve's questions, Mar'kost fought to maintain a neutral expression. "Well?"

"Hey, I should say that." Her feathered antennae twitched. "Don't act like this is normal. You don't make friends just like that—and Cadmus knows something about it, doesn't he? You've been keeping this woman a secret 'cause you thought I'd make a fuss. Do you really think I'm that childish? I get I'm not your type. I've made my peace with that. You've got no reason to keep secrets from me, so spit it out. How long've you known her? You're courting her, right?"

His tail curled around his ankles as he contemplated what his secrecy oath would allow him to share. "Four months. Last night was the first time I met her in person. We don't have a romantic relationship."

"Do you want to?"

"I've never considered it." It was the truth, as he hadn't expected to ever meet Liza in person.

"Well, you should if she's your type. Don't hold off because of me."

"I doubt she would be interested in me if I asked—but regardless, she's too busy and stressed to consider romance at the moment. Please don't bring it up to her." He retrieved his flask from Duskfeather's bag and emptied it on the ground. He'd been away from Liza for too long already, and being unable to sense her at all made him uneasy.

"You should still consider it." Raeve shrugged. "I mean, she'll get better eventually."

His nerves drew him closer to the tunnel entrance, but he paused to address her misconception. "Once she recovers, she'll return to a place I can't visit."

"Where-"

"She doesn't want me to share that information." Holding the flask in his mouth, he returned to his Forest drykon form and ducked into the tunnel.