Freezing Wings

Chapter 16

I shifted, about to slip off of his back. We were on solid ground and were no longer in danger after all, there was no reason for him to keep carrying me. However, the moment I moved his head swung around, looking at me with an annoyed look. "Don't move, you're still not good enough to walk around by yourself. If you tried, you'd probably fall and I didn't drag you all the way up here just for you to pass out. Eat first, then move."

His face was just as annoyed as before, yet his voice was less tight or reprimanding. Now, it was more like a gentle reminder instead of an exasperated demand. I thought for a moment, contemplating whether or not to follow. After a while I conceded, staying where I was.

There wasn't really any reason for me to not do it anyway. I probably would fall if I tried to walk, especially after my display before. Either way, it was him working, so I might as well let him do as he wanted to. I was comfortable anyway, his back was surprisingly comfy, especially when I used his wings as covers/pillows. It was a cozy arrangement.

I nodded and Lucas poked me on the head with his snout, turning his head forward and walking over to the side of the mountain at the back. It was covered with a thick layer of ice, black rock showing through. He sliced out a chunk of stone, carving it into the shape of a half-circle. I tilted my head, looking over his shoulder at what he was doing. He glanced at me out of the corner of his eye but didn't say anything, focusing on what he was doing.

He took a loose space scale from his arm, revealing the new scale underneath and using the old one as a tool. He scooped out the inside, shards of rock falling to the floor. His hand was soon covered in rock dust and he blew on it, blowing away the leftover rock dust and revealing a bowl. It was a bit crude but intricately done compared to the amount of time it took him. He only took a few minutes, but it looked like something you could find at any grocery store selling bowls.

He let me look at it for a moment, studying me over his shoulder as I turned it over, looking at what he had carved into it. It was just plain black stone, claw marks forming a unique design on the outside.

I looked up at him, a questioning look on my face. He just blinked at me, gently taking it from me and walking back over to the wall, carving out another stone. This stone was a bit different from the first.

Instead of plain black, it was a steel grey, bits of white in the grains. From my slightly fuzzy and probably inaccurate memory I identified it as some sort of slate, very common but very useful.

Lucas placed the bowl on the floor and sat down, me still on his back. He took the piece of slate and flexed his claws, crushing it into a powder, letting it fall into the newly made stone bowl until it was full. He passed it back to me, a blank expression on his face. "Try it."

I stared at the bowl in my hands and back to him, slightly apprehensive. So far I had never had rock, or any kind of stone. I had never gotten it from any of the scientists, nor had I eaten it when it was given to me as bait to get me moving after I stopped eating. This would be my first time trying it.

He nodded at me, a slight nudge urging me forward. I took a deep breath, steeling my nerves. There was evidence that I wouldn't be poisoned, nor would I die from it. The worst thing that could happen would be it not tasting good, and even then I could just spit it out.

"If this tastes gross its your fault. Here goes nothing..." I tilted my head back, pouring about a half-teaspoon worth's of grey powder into my mouth.

The texture wasn't gritty like I was expecting, or like how sand felt like whenever I got it into my mouth as a human. Instead, it was soft and quite smooth, as if it wasn't a powder at all and instead was a liquid. It covered the tip of my tongue, a taste like dark cherry lollipops making my taste buds awaken. The sweet taste was so familiar and recognizable that if I closed my eyes and look another taste, I would be able to identify it automatically.