Fairy Tale: The Rising Star

Chapter 6: Assumed Dead (Part 2)

It was about time. Chris's heartrate finally slowed down . . . hours later.

Unfortunately, the splitting headache lingered. Gone were the days of pain killers in bottles. He could only hope it would subside once the hunger pangs went away. 

In the firelight, he watched Kale Jokura's nose twitch. He was sleeping with his mat and blanket, only his face exposed, and he was starting to come around.

Chris gave the meat on a skewer one last turn.

The next time Chris looked over, Kale was squinting into the fire. "What are you doing?"

Cooking wasn't the weird part. Cooking before dawn, however, was pretty much unheard of. Even if they weren't sleeping on one of these excursions, rest, in general, was too precious.

Chris shrugged in reply. 

Kale sat up and added his injured arm to the sling across his torso. "What's that?" He pointed out the meat with his nose. "It smells . . . good."

The piece of meat Chris had acquired was huge at their fairy size. He wasn't even cooking all of it at once and there'd be plenty for everyone. "Muskrat."

"You couldn't sleep and you took down a muskrat in the dark? That must have been some nightmare."

Chris had nightmares so often, he couldn't fool anyone, not even someone as thick and inattentive as Kale. Chris didn't bother to admit or deny anything. He wasn't going to talk about it—not here, not now, not ever. He kept his eyes on the food until it was cooked to his satisfaction.

"Here. It's done." Chris forked some meat onto a clean rock slab and handed it to Kale. "And let's get going soon. Something big is gonna happen today. I have a feeling."

More like a haunting premonition. . .

In truth, time of day was of little consequence to Kale when it came to food he didn't have to forage for or prepare. He dug right in and barely came up for air. He looked awkward, though, using only his left hand. 

"How's that arm?" Chris asked.

"I'll live. I can feel the fever creeping up, though. It's good we'll be home today."

Chris nodded. Home. As always, it was a question more than an answer. . . . 

When they finished eating, they Modified to their human size and left for Ilima. They arrived a little after mid-morning and hid their human packs in an underground vault, protected by key and hidden in a dense area of plant-growth.

To enter the Zone of Protection, they had to return to their fairy size. They stepped into the invisible dome that recognized their identity in a very specific area, one of those mystifying features of Scott MacRae's magic. While some of the rescued fairy warriors veered toward Ilima, many joined Chris and Kale as they headed to basecamp.

The training grounds were empty. By this time of morning, the new army recruits and their commanding officers should have been at the apex of their drills. 

"Where is everyone?" Chris wondered aloud.

"I hope they're slacking off and not. . ." Kale didn't finish his thought, but he must have feared the worst, too.

They took the stairs to the underground bunker. There was a blast of cool air, which was always appreciated. They didn't need to have something underground for protection, but they used it for storage, private meetings, medical treatment, and there were a few prison cells in the back. Plus, it was a break from the heat and sun and it was therefore a common gathering place, perhaps more than it should have been. There were things to do, places to go, and wars to win.