Ark - Survivors Lost In Time - Exodus

Day Twenty

My watch was the last of the night, I spent the early hours taming two Dilos in the valley, a black male with white feathers and a red female with green feathers, the two of them followed me around as I walked the border of the valley. I stood with the two of them and watched the sun rise, I stroked them both on the head and we headed back to the facility, the expansion had been finished the day before, the great room was four stories tall with a behemoth gate facing out into the valley, a hatchery had been built underneath it, which was a blessing as I had discovered an egg in Firewing's nest two days ago, the egg had been incubating since then. I checked on the egg, still warm but no movement, and I went up to the dining hall leaving the Dilos to patrol the valley together. The men were already wake and eating their breakfasts when I arrived, Squirrel handed me a plate of fried dodo eggs, I scarfed the food, and asked about plans for the day.

"I plan on doing some taming," Squirrel voiced first.

"We plan on doing a metal run," Swan said indicating Antonio.

"Sounds like a good plan, I am going to take Firewing to the Ice Biome and collect more pelt for our armor." They all nodded, there was no more building needed, the only things we had to work on were our personal homes if we wished to build them, so we were working on resources that the tribe needed.

"Everyone be safe," I said as I left the room to climb up to Firewing's nest.

I flew her in a loop around the valley and headed out, we glided out on the updrafts along the northern shore, I followed the coast line, using my spyglass to check the coast for any pelt producing beast.

The sun was reaching its peak as I steered Firewing to land on a cliff edge. I cleared away the packed snow and placed down some wood, I lit a fire for us to stay warm, I cooked up some meat, and watched the Argentavis flying around the cliff face below. I checked the amount of pelt Firewing and I had gathered, tucking the valuable cargo back into Firewing's saddle bags. I leaned back against the bags and stared up at the bright blue sky. I watched Firewing as she tore into the pile of meat I had given her. I felt a peace, for the first time since this Ark had begun, I felt secure with my tribe status, I felt safe with my tribemates, we had a safe home, and with the alliances we had with the other factions we were safe from attack of hostile tribes.

I felt myself dosing in the warmth of the fire when the ground began to shake, I jumped to my feet, and looked towards the trees, a heard of ten mammoths was stampeding through the woods, a pack of four dire wolves on their heels. We had to move and fast before the dire wolves spotted an easier human shaped target for their hunt. I grabbed the saddle bags and threw them onto Firewing's back. I jumped up onto the saddle, I did not have time to strap myself in. Firewing jumped into the air, as the mammoths ran through the fire scattering the ashes. Firewing screeched in pain, as a hook on one of the mammoth's tusks struck her wing. She veered in the air, I struggled to hang on, she snapped her beak at the mammoths, they continued to run from the wolves, paying her no mind. The last mammoth, reared in front of us, hitting Firewing square in her breast with the brunt of its horn. Firewing screamed, and bucked, I could not hang on, I fell, the cliff edge rushed by, my scream joined that of my bird as I fell. I could see, Firewing struggling against the tusk in her chest, claws and beak working away, wings buffeting the face of the mammoth, the last sight of my bird was the mammoth flinging her from her and the wolves over taking her. My arm burnt, I screamed in pain, my Firewing, my beautiful bird was gone. Tear left my cheeks as I fell through the air, I landed in a cloud of white, landing in the snow drift at the base of the cliff, I would have felt better had I died and been respawned. I was buried in snow, I stared up at the sky, I was alone, my arm burning in pain from my lost link.

"Fang?" A deep voice called from above, a shadow passed over me, I felt another weight hit the snow beside me, a hand reached down to me, I took it. "What happened?" Cradix asked.

"Firewing," I said, staring up at the cliff above us. "She sacrificed herself for me," I hung my head, and hugged myself, "I lost her,"

"Oh hun I am so sorry," He whispered, he took me into a hug, and let me sob into his shoulder. "I know how much she meant to you," He rubbed my back. "Let's get you home, and warm," He said, I nodded, he led me up the ramp onto his carrier quetz, he tucked me between his beaver and his doed, I was warm and safe again. He urged his quetz into the air, and turned towards home.

"Where is Kabr?" I asked, my voice cracked with pain.

"He headed home before me this morning, with our payment." Cradix called back to me. "We got two more quetzal out of the contract. I had planned on one being yours," He said, I tried to smile in gratitude but only ended up thinking of Firewing and crying.

We landed safely in the paddock, and unloaded his construction crew. My body felt numb from the overwhelming loss of my link with Firewing, she had been the one constant in my life since I had tamed her, she had never left my side, she was with me on the Footpaw, but now she was gone. I stared blankly as the others returned and welcomed our tribemates home, I went and stood on the top of the facility and stared at the sky, I would never see her orange wings beat against the sky again, her screech would echo in my mind for the rest of my time here, I could not replace her.

"Fang?" Cradix called up to me, I looked blankly down at him, not really seeing him, I just knew he was there. "Is that your hatchling in the incubation room?" He asked, I cocked my head to the side.

"There is an egg there, it was," I choked up, tears leaked from my eyes, "Firewing left in in her nest a few days back," I sobbed.

"It's hatched, and he needs attention from his mother," Cradix called up to me, I do not remember moving so fast in all my time on the Ark, I slid down the steel ladder and hit the ground running, I slammed the doors open startling the little black chick half out of his mind.

The tiny chick was all fluff and aggression when I approached, he snapped his glistening black beak at my out stretched hand. I took some meat from the feeding trough and carefully offered him a morsel, he stared at it for a moment and then looked up at me, and snatched it from my hand and gulped it down. I sat in front of him and hand fed him for what felt like hours. Cradix joined me a little while later and sat on the edge of the feeding trough and handed me fresh meat whenever I was out.

"Have you named him yet?" He asked, I shook my head, I had not taken my eyes off the little Argentavis since I had sat down, not even to look at Cradix. "You should come up with one soon, he will be bound to you after too much longer." I nodded, this was only the second baby I had raised but I knew how it worked. I could see his beacon glowing orange and red under his feathers on his chest. "Do you want me to keep an eye on him and you can go get some rest?" He asked, I shook my head, I did not care what time it was, I was not leaving the last thing connecting me to Firewing. He stood walked over to me and sat with his back to mine. "I will just have to keep you company," He said. "I am sorry," He whispered.

"For what," I croaked, my throat was raw from crying.

"For leaving you," He sighed.

"You did not leave me," I said, "You were on a contract, it is our job, it is what our tribe does," I leaned my head back against his shoulder, tossing the growing argy the occasional piece of food. "It was my own fault for being out in the snow biome," I voiced. He leaned his cheek against mine.

"I do not just mean now," He sighed, I stared at him out of the corner of my eye, I knew what he meant, but it was something we did not talk about, we had not talked about for multiple Wipes.

"We promised to not speak of that, ever," I whispered, he turned his head to look at me, and nodded.

"I am still sorry," He sighed.

"I know," I replied.