Nighthowl Tribe

– Chapter 1 –
Elijah | Padme | Avianos | Meteora

With a bad feeling in his guts, Elijah had to leave his friend behind. He still heard the leaders voice ringing in his ears...

«Gather all you can find and run as far as your paws can carry you!»

He knew Rheagal was not alone, but still he felt like he, as the healer, should've stayed close to the injured of the fight. But then again, he wouldn't be much use dead and that crazed stranger didn't seem to care whom he was hurting at all.

As the lime hob ran past his tribemates' tents, he noticed more victims of the blue sunmasks wrath and his heart skipped a beat at the thought he might've found Padme before him. Eli sped up and rushed over the jungle floor with the speed of a hare chased by a hungry Turvern. The ground was slippery and muddy from the rain while the storm was still raging over the territory. Fear and sorrow had a tight grip on the healer, but the told himself to ignore these thoughts. This was just not the time to give in to his worries.

As he finally reached the clearing where Padme and Mable used to be, he first saw that their herd was still there, crowded together under the shelter of the trees at the edge of the shepherd's camp. But where were the Salikos?

«Elijah? What are you doing here?»

Out of the shadow of their tent came the two jills who had noticed his arrival.

«Why are you out during the storm, isn't it safer at the temple?»

«I can't explain right now, but you two have to come with me immediately.»

Padme felt how nervous the hob was and trusted him if he said it was important. She nodded towards Mable, who agreed to follow without words, and the group began to move. Eli was happy that his partner was fine, but they were still not out of danger. The lunatic might've been following them and only Kydos knows what he did to Kitovu and the others.

Finally they reached the outer wall and took a moment to rest.

The sunmask took a deep breath before he spoke, the jills hanging on his every word.

«A Saliko appeared, night blue with a bright mask. Rheagal tried to defeat him get him to leave the camp, but he was unbeatable. It's like he was sent by the gods to get rid of us.»

«What do you mean 'get rid of us'?» Padme asked.

«He...killed some of our tribemembers.»

The two could not hold back their gasps, now realizing why the hob had been so nervous before. Mable shook her head, trying to understand the whole situation.

«What about the guards? Why did nobody notice him? And the warriors who had their tents closeby?»

«I can't say for sure, but the rain probably made it possible for him to infiltrate the camp without anyone realizing until it was too late. Most tents are empty, so maybe some managed to flee.»

«Or they were killed.»

A raspy voice arose from closeby and the three flinched, but quickly realized it was a familiar face that walked up to them. Avianos, with a very pregnant Meteora in his shadow, appeared before them. They had heard everything. The healer was relieved to see the jill was fine, as she would've been easy prey for the ruthless killer. The caramel noticed his gaze and snorted.

«I'd protect her with my life. If that monster would try to lay a paw on my girl he'd regret it. Or I would not be standing here any longer.»

Eli nodded quickly, he knew Avianos was speaking the truth. Now Meteora stepped up and raised her soft voice.

«What's the plan now? What is Rheagal gonna do? We're gonna fight that stranger, right?»

«Rheagal is badly injured and the sunmask seems impossible to stop. We're trying to gather as many Salikos as we can and run, but the tribe is scattered. I think they were gonna head to Mahati, so we'd need to get to the other gate as quick as possible. They might not wait for us.»

Avianos shook his head with determination.

«You go, we'll leave from this gate closeby. A large group attracts attention and we can't risk that. Meteora is not that fast right now. We'll be fine on our own though, don't worry.»

The others knew he was right, but nobody felt good letting them go on alone.

Padme got close to her partner and snuggled up on him, happy they were together and unharmed. Both wished this moment could last forever, but they knew they were running out of time.

«Wait» Mable interrupted them «what about everyone else? What if they don't know that we're meeting up?»

Now the next wave of anxiety washed over the hob. That's right, where was his brother?

«Did nobody see Salvador?»

They all shook their heads in turn and now Padme seemed worried too.

«And Kaheana, I can't leave her behind!»

Her other sister Aiko she disregarded intentionally. The large hob with the full mane growled to himself and in his deep voice said what nobody wanted to admit.

«You'll just have to hope and pray. There's nothing else to do now, you cannot go looking for them. Now move, time is of the essence.»

They all said their quick goodbyes and the group from earlier moved on with their journey while Avianos and Meteora left the territory of the Nighthowl tribe together.

---

– Chapter 2 –
Mason

Mason had watched it all happen.
Mikah wanted only to leave for a short moment to get some herbs from the healer for his stomach ache, but when he didn't return, the red Tatra went to go look for his friend. Similarly to the shepherds pasture, the graveyard the two were working and living in was a bit farther away from the center, but the hob did not mind the little night hike, despite the heavy rain. He was a tough one after all. But even before he reached the stairs to the temple, he noticed a commotion and hid in the shadow of a tree. Mason was not afraid of a fight, not at all, but he wasn't sure what was even happening and preferred to check out the situation first.
«It's no use struggling! Leaving your vile tracks on a sacred place like this! Your souls will burn in a fire of never ending torment! I will send you demons back to the hell from whence you came!»
«Uh oh.»
Mason has known is fair share of crazy Salikos, but that sounded a bit too much even for him. Suddenly the stranger who'd been speaking attacked Rheagal, resulting in Kitovu leaping into battle. The Tatra felt his guts twist and turn at the sight of the battle. He hesitated, thinking about whether to help out or not, but then he saw the body of his friend, lying in the muddy dirt. The stranger was distracted, so Mason left his shelter and walked closer.
«Mikah?»
Carefully he toughed the body, but he was already getting cold.
«By the gods...»
With his eyes fixed on the enemy, Mason heaved the lifeless body of the undertaker on his back. Their job had never been easy and as the ones so closely related to death, the two had often been avoided by others, being their own closest friends. Nobody would care about his corpse but him. Solemly he walked back to the gravesite, an open hole already waiting for another Saliko, only he did not expect it to be Mikah himself. Mason had dug that hole just a few days ago, not knowing it would be the most important one he'd ever made. Carefully he put the dark granite in and looked at him for a moment, thinking about what they experienced together ever since they'd joined the tribe. The dead hob still had his beloved raven feathers in his fur, and Mason was forced to think about what would happen to the birds now that their caretaker was gone.
«They'll be fine Mikah, I'm sure. They were feral anyway, they will be feral again. But I'm sure they'll mourn for you, just as I do.»
One of the black feathers had fallen on the ground next to the grave as he had put the body down on the ground and Mason picked it up, looking at it for a while. Then he knotted it into his own tailfur, as a memento to not only Mikah, but all who had lost their lives that day.
«I know you will be back someday. And maybe we'll meet again. Until then, let the ravens watch over you, Crow.»
Then he proceeded to fill in the hole.
When he was done, he walked back to the clearing to see how the battle was going, but there was nobody around. The wind was howling and he felt the certainty that nothing would be as it was anymore. With confidence in his next decision he walked to a dirt pit he'd been working on every now and again, where he had spent lots of time with his favourite hobby: digging. A while ago he had found an underground tunnel system that he had spent a moon or two exploring and realized it was big enough to go beyond the territory of the nighthowl tribe, possibly even past the jungle. He'd heard about a large tunnel system under Ibea and all signs pointed towards this being it. And now it would be his escape route. With one last glance back, he jumped into the pit and left his former life behind, but the sorrow he carried with him.

---

– Chapter 3 –
Aiko | Salvador | Desmond | Kellen | Szelma

In the meantime, Aiko and Salvador were together. They hadn't been home when the storm hit and because of that sheltered themselves under a large, overhanging rock. The jill had suggested getting closer to keep each other warm and the hob had agreed, just for this sole purpose. Her advances towards him ever since she arrived in the tribe he either didn't notice or he was too shy to engage up, Aiko didn't know. But anyway, she kept trying, flirting with him and using all her charm to get him to warm up towards her. Salvador did like her, that much she knew, but how much she was uncertain. A couple hours later, when the storm had moved past, they left their temporary den and moved back towards the center of the territory. They noticed how quiet everything was and got more and more uncomfortable the closer they got.
«Do you smell that? What is this?» Salvador was confused, but Aiko kept calm and collected as she answered.
«It's blood.»
«Blood? But...the scent is so intense, it's everywhere...how can this be?»
Suddenly a rusle in the bushes besides them startled the two and they started running the way they came from, but something chased after them. Aiko didn't want to admit being scared and told herself there was probably nothing to worry about, but Salvador was hauling ass and she didn't want to loose him in whatever was going on.
«Wait!» whispered their pursuer and the two hesitated. Sal was still unsure and ready to keep running, but Aiko was done fleeing for no reason.
«Who's there?!»
«Shhh, be quiet for Kydos' sake!»
Out of the ferns stepped a small group of salikos, led by Desmond, the explorer. Behind him Kellen and Szelma snuck out of the darkness, all keeping low and being quiet.
«What's happening, what are you all doing?» asked Aiko, she was getting impatient now.
«Not here. Did you see any more Salikos on your way here?»
«No, we were alone.»
«Okay good. I think that's all we can get, let's leave.»
As Desmond wanted to lead the group towards the closest edge of the territory, Aiko stepped in his way.
«I'm not going anywhere until I know what's going on.»
The green hob with the empty spots stared at her, both held each others gaze for a while and nobody seemed to wanna back down. Salvador in the meantime looked at Kellen and Szelme, who both seemed, scared, constantly checking their surroundings and having completely lost their usually carefree and happy attitude. They seemed almost traumatized.
«Alright fine you stubborn jill. Nighthowl is no more. A beast in the form of a Saliko has appeared and destroyed the tribe. Everyone has left, and those that weren't fast enough are dead. I stayed and searched for survivors, we all should be the last who are left.»
«What?»
The dark jill with the bright spots started to laugh.
«You don't actually think I'll believe that, right? That's ridiculous.»
«But you two have proof, right? Look at your paws.»
Confused and with a raised eyebrow Aiko and Sal looked down and suddenly it dawned on them. They'd been walking through a pool of blood earlier, their paws still stained with it.
«Let's not dawdle, he's still around.»
Then the spotted hob stepped closer and looked worriedly at the group before him.
«What about the Salikos from the temple? Did you search for them too? Is Elijah-»
Slowly Desmond shook his head.
«We can't get there, it's where he was last seen. He may be in the temple right now, I don't know. But Rheagal and the others fled, as far as I know Elijah was sent to get Padme. I'm sure he's long gone.»
«I have to find him...»
Then he felt Aiko step close to him, their flanks touching.
«And I need to find my sister. Even if she doesn't want me to.»
They nodded towards each other, a silent agreement to search them together.
Then the group finally got under way.