Title: Birds of a Feather
Summary: Bryan is deemed a sadistic radical, too dangerous for society, so is sent into the army… who knows what could happen to him… well, I mean, it IS Bryan we're talking about here… BryanRay KaiTala
Rating: M
Warnings: bad language (naughty Bryan!), citrusy goodness and my tendency to jump around in the timeline. Just watch out. One minute Bryan could be a newbie, then the next scene, he could have been there for three months (insert big grin)
Prenotes: Caberwolf requested this from me and being a gracious authoress, I granted it. He simply asked for a BryRay with slight angst… though there might not be obvious angst, Bryan does get a hard time… I'm so evil and I know it. It was originally a oneshot (as he requested) but it got too long and i took too long to write it, so it is now a twoshot enjoy hun!
Birds OfA Feather - Part One
"I always joked about Bryan being a loony but…" Ian trailed off.
Tala stared down at the Snake sympathetically. The younger was taking it harder than anyone else; Ian had lost his role model…
Bryan had been sentenced to serve within the Russian army by the court judge. They had all been tried by the authority, but Tala, Ian and Spencer had simply been put within care for various reasons. Luckily for them, Kai stepped forward and agreed to let them stay with him and his newly-found relative.
Tala guessed Bryan was being sent down for the incident with Ray Kon in the tournament and the jury thought him nothing more than a sadistic lunatic… though the redhead had an inkling it was also to do with the fact that Bryan refused to speak through it all and it got everybody… pissed.
Tala sighed and sat back, wishing for the car seat to swallow him up and never let him go. He was losing his teammate, comrade and friend… just because of Boris, Voltaire and their ridiculous plans for world domination…
Blue eyes turned to look out the limo window sadly, tears welling up inside, watching the scenery that passed… the scenery that the whole team could see together… now there was one missing… and who knew what would happen to him.
"Private Kuznetsov!"
Everyone winced at their General's roar… well, everyone except Bryan. He stared up at the reddening man with a cool expression.
"Yes, General?"
The General ground his teeth. "My office. Now."
The Falcon followed the man out of the barracks and into a separate cabin. The door was slammed shut and the General stalked behind his desk. A tall man with messy jet black hair and piercing dark eyes, he was nicknamed 'the Hawk' and feared by all in the regiment – and all those who were unfortunate to meet him. Yes, General Nikifor Yelkov was one scary dude.
"Kuznetsov, can I ask how you managed to get into a fight on your first day in this regiment?"
Bryan shrugged nonchalantly.
"Kuznetsov-"
"General, I do have a name, you know."
General Yelkov frowned. "I call you what I want, Private. Now, mind telling me what happened?"
"It was a misunderstanding, sir."
"About what?"
"Someone thinking they knew me, sir."
Yelkov blinked. 'This kid is something new…'
The middle aged general slowly sat down. "Sit."
"General, I am no-"
"Sit!"
Bryan resisted the urge to snap back again, and sat down with a glare.
"Private, though I may not agree with violence within my division, pooh-poohing is something forbidden. So, tell me, beginning to end, what happened." He paused to light a cigar. "And screw abstinence and all the formalities."
Bryan smirked. "Two words: Court Case."
"Ah…" Yelkov sighed. "Private, I'm going to say this once and once only. You can't lash out just because someone mentions something about your team or underestimate you. You must just shoulder it and carry on, later to prove them wrong in every single aspect of what they say. I don't know what the Quartermaster Sergeant told you when you arrived here, but I'm going to let you in on a little secret of mine: my motto is 'Love and Dread'. Love those near but still force dread into their hearts. Just keep that in mind." He nodded at the door. "Dismissed."
Ian sighed and continued to stare glumly at the front door from his position on the stairs, waiting for the post to drop in. It was seven o'clock – the mail would arrive in minutes.
Kai appeared from his room and blinked at the Snake. "Ian? What are you doing up?"
Ian didn't look at him. "Post…"
The brass on the door clicked open and letters slid through the gap. One millisecond Ian was sitting on the stairs. The next, he was riffling through mail.
Tala emerged from his own room, rubbing sleep from his eyes. "What's-?" He sighed when he saw Ian. "Post…"
"He's been doing it for two months."
"Ever since Bryan left."
The two looked sadly at each other. "We need Bryan back."
"Sir," Bryan looked boredly down at the man before him, "the General wishes to see you."
Bryan nodded. "Where?"
"His office, sir."
Bryan sighed and swung his legs over the edge of his bunk, falling to the floor nimbly. The corporal followed him out of his room but split from him to go down the corridor the other way.
Bryan yawned and walked down the hallway, out of the building and into the fresh air. The breeze and atmosphere around him was crisp with the snow. Surprisingly, it wasn't cold; just cool. But then again, Bryan was used to Siberian weather.
He found the General Yelkov standing outside his cabin, a large cigar in between slim fingers. The dark eyed Hawk nodded at the Falcon.
"You wanted to see me sir."
"Screw the formalities, Bryan. You're with me, remember? Not the Field Marshal."
Bryan chuckled and shook his head sadly.
"So…" Yelkov exhaled smoke. "You've been here for - what? - a year and already you've risen from Private to Lieutenant-General… and you've picked up a few of my habits." He added as he watched Bryan light up a cigarette. "What will your team do with you?"
"Nothing."
"Hm?"
Bryan shrugged. "They're not the boss of me… they didn't have to serve in the army…"
The Hawk studied Bryan in the corner of his eye. The Falcon was staring out past the spiked fence of the base and into the wilderness of Siberia and what they both knew as the direction to Moscow.
"But you do miss them, don't you…"
Bryan sighed and took a drag of the cigarette. "Yeah… yeah, I do. No letters, no phone calls, no visits… but that's Siberia for you…"
"Yes, I suppose…" Yelkov smirked. "But what if you got the chance to be with them again?"
"What are you planning, Hawk?" Bryan asked warily.
Yelkov mocked surprise. "Bryan, I can't believe you. It's been a year! Your sentence is up."
Bryan remained passive.
"Something… wrong?"
"I… don't… know…" Bryan admitted slowly. "My team was my life… but I've changed."
"You have. You know, I could swear your hair looks silver, not lavender anymore…" Yelkov muttered, ruffling the Falcon's hair. Bryan glared. "Yes, I know you mean personality wise. You're no longer a lump of ice. Well, you are, but I guess I must be fire because around me, you've melted. But, you're still the same old, sadistic, sarcastic, son of a bitch."
"Oh thank you." Bryan mumbled.
Yelkov laughed. "So Bryan… I've heard you're being pooh-poohed again."
"Hawk, stop with the pooh-poohing already. It took me a whole week to figure out that the term 'pooh-pooh' means to scorn and reject someone…"
"It's not my fault I'm British." Yelkov protested, lighting up another cigar.
"But I don't give shit about what people think I can or can't do…"
"Well, I hope so, Bryan. You know, if there's one thing I've learned from being in the army, it's never ignore a pooh-pooh."
"Oh? And why not?" Bryan inquired.
"I knew a Major: got pooh-poohed. Made the mistake of ignoring the pooh-pooh - he pooh-poohed it. Fatal error, because it turned out all along that the soldier who pooh-poohed him had been pooh-poohing a lot of other officers, who pooh-poohed their pooh-poohs. In the end, we had to disband the regiment - morale totally destroyed ... by pooh-pooh!"
Bryan rolled his eyes. "Stop it with the pooh-poohs!" He groaned. "I now know how Tala feels!"
"A letter a letter a letter a letter a letter a letter a letter a letter a-!"
"Ian, shut up!" Tala shouted, glaring at the Snake.
But Ian paid no attention. "A letter from Bryan!"
"Gimme that!" Tala yelled, rushing at the Shrimp, but missing the short one. "Ian…!"
Ian ran away. Tala suddenly smirked and, like the wicked witch of the west to the munchkins, cackled. Ian felt sweat surface on his brow; Tala only cackled when he was in an extremely sadistic mood…
The next thing he knew, he was encased in ice, the only part of his body in the fresh air being the arm that had the letter. Wolborg spun beside him, tauntingly, and Tala swaggered up to the munchkin.
"I'll take that." Tala said, snatching the letter out of his grip.
"What's…?" Spencer paused in his actions to enter the room when he saw the icicle-Ian. He sighed. "Letter from Bryan?"
"Letter from Bryan." Tala confirmed, slowly unsealing it with long, slender fingers. In the corner of his eye he saw Kai enter too, but ignored him.
But he was glad the Phoenix was nearby because as soon as he read the letter, his heart sank so much that his knees almost gave way. Kai rushed forward and made sure Tala didn't collapse, holding the Wolf up, crimson eyes concerned.
"Tala? What's wrong? Is he…?"
Tala shook his head, eyes scrunched up with tears. They others thought he was sad but when icy blues were unleashed again, this time shining with anger, they recoiled.
"The bastard's staying there!"
Bryan sighed and looked out the window of the rumbling truck. One of his men - though a man of thirty, he still obeyed the eighteen year old Bryan - drove the truck, the rest of his men in the back or in the other vehicles. General Yelkov was in the car up front, as a general should do - lead his men into battle.
It wasn't a true battle, but it was a battle nonetheless. They were driving through Eastern Siberia, heading to a checkpoint, which would have them airlifted to the isolated regions of the Chinese mountains.
The reason was simple. Dangerous terrorists and rebels were, well, terrorising China. Since they were not exactly the most skilled, they were taking out their pent up anger - most likely caused by the Chinese government - on the small mountainside villages. And since the Chinese military were concentrating on the big cities like Hong Kong, the Siberian Snow Hawks – Bryan's regiment – decided to help. The Russian Government backed it, so they got all the fancy aircraft for free.
Bryan looked at the driver of his vehicle. He was a Chinese man – actually, about a quarter of the regiment were made up of Chinese men. Sharing the borders with the country was the main reason (If you ignore Mongolia…).
But the Chinese man's knuckles were white from his grip on the steering wheel. Beads of sweat were congregating on his forehead and Bryan – a master of reading people like a book – could see fear shining in his eyes.
He laid a hand on the man's shoulder. "Calm it, soldier."
The man took a deep breath. "Sorry sir."
"Being on edge causes accidents, you know. Hopefully, if this happens, your gun will be pointing at the terrorists, not me."
"It won't happen again, sorry sir."
Bryan flashed him a reassuring smile and looked away.
Unknown to Bryan, the man's fears were based on hearsay. Rumours were being spread that these rebels were after any Chinese men, especially enemy soldiers; that's why the Chinese military had stayed out. And the rumour was joined by more gossip that if their Lieutenant-General was in trouble, he would sacrifice another man for himself and that if you were in trouble, he wouldn't risk his neck for you…
That's why Bryan's men feared him with hatred.
"Tala, you need to calm down." Kai reasoned.
"Calm down?" Tala repeated, rounding on the Phoenix. "Calm down! Don't you fucking tell me to calm down!"
The redhead stormed past the blunette and slammed his palms down on the windowsill, leaning on them and glaring out the window.
"Kai, he's out in Siberia, in the most secure army base in Russia. And in that base, there are so many regiments… I'll never see him… I thought I could wait a year-"
"And you did!" Kai soothed.
"But I can't wait any longer!" Tala cried, spinning round and collapsing into Kai's arms, shaking. "He could be dead at any point and we wouldn't know!"
Kai blinked, but hugged him, rubbing his back. "Tala… Bryan will be back and he'll be safe."
Blood splattered on the ground and a being fell to his knees, leaning on the tree. The rain lashed down and the lightning in the sky silhouetted another four beings. The water trickled down the being's exposed skin, mixing with sweat and blood.
"Goodbye, Lieutenant-General."
"Where is he?"
"Sir, sorry, I do not know."
Yelkov ground his teeth and stared out the flaps of the tents. "Send the search parties out. He can't be safe out there; especially after that attack… he could be injured… and the storm doesn't ease me…"
As if to make a point, a clap of thunder boomed above and the wind howled. Yelkov sighed. "Search parties NOW!"
The man nodded numbly and quickly and rushed outside. The Hawk sighed shakily.
"Ten men lost…" He murmured to himself with a quivering voice. "All dead… but one maybe still alive…" A lone tear escaped from his eye. "Please Bryan… don't make me lose another son."
His eyes narrowed as he decided. He grabbed his long trench coat and stalked out into the tempest. One of the soldiers – one of Bryan's men – rushed up to the General; it was the driver.
"Sir, where are you going?"
"To find Lieutenant-General Kuznetsov." Yelkov roared over the thunder. "Stop me and you will regret it."
The driver shook his head. "Sir, I will aid you." He bowed. "It would be an honour to repay my debt."
Yelkov paused but nodded. "Come on, soldier."
As if there was no monsoon, they calmly walked out of the camp and into the forest.
Yelkov's head was a buzz. Only half an hour ago, they had been attacked by a group of the rebels and, like he had said, ten men had been killed. The rebels retreated and-
"Sir, they did not retreat."
The Hawk blinked. "Did I say that out loud, Corporal Muzane?"
"Yes sir!" The Corporal yelled back. "But, to be truthful sir, I saw the Lieutenant chase after them! I'm sure…" The wind blew the Chinese soldier back slightly. "I'm sure they were goading him, sir."
"Goading?"
"Goading, sir, yes!"
Yelkov growled, but the sound was lost to the thunder and wind. "Was he… in any way injured?"
"I could not see sir, sorry!"
"He could be anywhere…" Yelkov trailed off, surrender clear on his voice.
They continued, though, but as a flash of lightning clapped up above, the silhouette of a being was seen. He was slumped on his knees. Silver hair shone in the temporary light… unmistakable…
"Bryan…"
"Sir?" The Chinese driver stared up worriedly at the General.
Yelkov blinked, and the being was gone… it was a hallucination…
"Nothing. I thought I saw something…"
"Sir, we should head back and come back in the morning!" Muzane shouted over the roar of the wind. "This storm is getting worse!"
"I will not- God above!"
An almost blinding light burst into the sky and a bird-like screech pierced the silence. The two men squinted up at the now light sky to see a majestic falcon hovering in the night air, causing the light. It stayed still, eyes seeming to stay fixed upon them.
The wind blew against their backs, forcing them forwards and towards the bird.
"It looks like Falborg!" Yelkov yelled in awe. "Bryan's guardian, I think he called him. Come on!"
Muzane raced after the dark General, shaking with fear of the giant, ethereal bird. They entered a clearing and the falcon disappeared. The night was once again dark, with flashes of lightning and crashes of thunder, mixing with the howling wind and lashing rain.
But they both saw something ahead. Slumped on the ground, not moving, completely still…
Yelkov took one step towards the being but something pinged on the ground beside him. A shining bullet rolled along the dirt next to his foot. His eyes narrowed.
"Rebels… you were right, Corporal… they intended to use Kuznetsov to trap us…"
"And used him, we have. Though the plan was not to trap you." Someone jumped out of the tree nearby the unmoving being and various people emerged from the undergrowth.
Light was cast around the clearing by many lanterns, carried by the rebels.
The ringleader laughed, still standing beside the unconscious being… who the two military men now knew was Bryan. The silver hair told them immediately. But all the men were still unknown, identities hidden by masks or balaclavas.
"So," The ringleader began casually, "you come looking for your dear Lieutenant-General, Yelkov? Very loyal of you. Though, your mission is fulfilled, so you can leave us to finish him off."
"You'll do nothing of the sort." Yelkov barked. "By the time we're finished here, you'll be running home and crying to mummy."
The ringleader laughed again. "I don't think so. You see, General, though we are fighting to change… certain things within our country, we thought, on the way, why not kill two birds with one stone." His foot smashed down on Bryan's back, but the Falcon did not even twitch. "He will regret ever doing such things to our brother."
Yelkov blinked. "Brother? What did he do?"
"Come on, Yelkov. It was on TV. He almost killed Ray Kon, an innocent, yet proud and strong fighter."
"Now listen here!" Yelkov roared. "That was Boris Balkov controlling him! It was either him doing that to Ray, or-"
"Being killed himself? Hm?" The ringleader finished. He laughed. "He is selfish. Sometimes I wonder how he became to be your underling, Yelkov. Leading all those innocent people – most our brothers – and tainting their pure minds with sadistic thoughts of hurt, misery and pain."
"He has done nothing of the sort!"
"And so he will not." The ringleader took his foot off Bryan's back and leant down to his face, putting his ear near his mouth. He smirked as he stood tall again. "You see, General, during our little chit chat, Bryan here has been very unsociable and rude by leaving this plane." The smirk increased. "You see, I haven't killed him. You have. By your 'trying to distract me' plan, Bryan's injuries became such a strain that… his body gave up on his soul. And I hope his soul goes to hell. See you soon, murderer!"
The light vanished and so did the rebels. The General and Corporal were the only ones left.
Slowly, Yelkov walked up to the still body of Bryan, army boots making no sound in the wet mud. He knelt on his knees next to his underling, mouth open in shock.
A shaking hand slowly made contact with the mud splattered, pastel skin of Bryan's cheek… but to the general, it felt…
"Warm…"
"W-What, General?" The Corporal asked in a quivering voice.
The wind and thunder seemed to quieten, as if wanting to hear the conversation.
"His skin is-"
Bryan's eyes snapped open and he drew in breath, before coughing. The General jumped in shock.
"B-Bryan…!"
Bryan closed his eyes. "Did…I…f-fool… them?" He asked in a very quiet and weak voice, body shaking from pain and cold.
"Yes and I too, you bastard." The general snapped back. But he cooled off. "They could be back. Can you move?"
There was a pause.
"N-No… too tired… can't I just-?"
"No, Kuznetsov. You can't just curl up and sleep. We have to get you medical care." Yelkov looked up at the Corporal. "Help me carry him."
"Tala, what's wrong?"
No reply.
"Tala?"
Again, no reply.
"Tala!"
Silence.
"For the love of God! Tala!"
Tala's icy blues snapped towards crimson depths, looking startled and somewhat lost. "Hm?"
"Tala… I've been calling your name for what seems like an eternity." Kai said. "Something wrong?"
Tala sighed and snuggled into Kai's warmth. "Something is wrong…"
"What is it?"
"…Bryan… I f-feel something… as if something has happen to him and it's life or death… call it paranoia-" Tala added before Kai could interrupt, "-but I feel it. And it's not good."
Kai could only hold the Wolf close, rocking his slim frame slowly…
He could hear voices…
Voices through the muggy atmosphere of sleep and warmth…
He tried to make out the voices, but the mugginess still held onto his senses…
But then, silence greeted him and allowed him to slowly gain consciousness fully…
"Young Ray, are you sure you are fine with him being here?"
"Yes, Sensei."
"Fine then, young one. You may go back to your team. True to my word, I will have someone treat his-"
"Sensei, perhaps it will be wiser to have me treat his wounds? Many in the village resent Bryan, including the healers."
"…Do you not resent him, Ray?"
"I… don't know. Partly, yes. But the General told me the truth and that resentment has subsided. He has gone through a horrifying and near-death experience. It would be safer if I was with him. It would also help the healing process… and I'm not talking about him."
There was a pause.
"Fine, young one. But I shall send Lee to be near in case…"
Beads crackled as they tapped each other as a being entered through the room.
Ray Kon stood in the doorway, hands keeping the beads away from his body. His stance slackened when he saw the battered and beaten form of his once enemy, Bryan Kuznetsov.
His torn and tattered shirt had previously been removed, leaving an equally torn and tattered torso to be seen. Muscular arms were littered with scrapes, athletic chest soaked in blood and matured face sporting many bruises.
Ray closed his eyes for a moment or too in prayer before striding over to the bed on which the unconscious (semi-unconscious, though Ray did not know) Bryan lay.
The Neko-jin opened up a medical kit filled with herbs and many other healing plants, setting upon the wooden floor.
In a small wooden bowl, he mixed sage and other aromatic plants together to form a salve that he would apply to the wounds to help heal and kill infection; he also added pure, spring water to the mixture to make it easier to smear over cuts.
Dabbing a piece of cloth in the salve, he dabbed at the meanest-looking wound. He felt muscles ripple beneath the skin as Bryan tensed…
Ray finally knew the Falcon was awake.
"Ray, I don't think this is wise."
"What?" Ray turned to look at the Lion, who had just entered.
Lee shook his head. "I hope you have thought about this Ray. He almost killed you not a year ago."
"It's different," Ray replied, looking back to cleaning the now bleeding wound. "It wasn't his fault. Boris blackmailed him into it and… if I had been in his shoes… I would've done the same."
Lee studied his brother and friend but did not reply. He only watched the Tiger continue to treat the large, bleeding wounds; once or twice, Ray placed slim fingers over the Falcon's wrists and neck to check his pulse, also.
When Lee deemed him ready, Ray shook his head.
"No, I need to check for breakages."
Lee rolled his eyes. "Perfectionist…"
Ray chuckled and shook his head sadly, standing and moving across the room to where Lee stood, beside the water basin, also taking the mixture bowl with him.
"I know you hate him, Lee." Ray said. "And I know fully-well why. But you've always told me and Mariah – everyone-"
"Deserves a second chance, yeah."
Ray fixed him with an almost stern look, whilst he washed the mixture bowl in the cool water. "Bryan - though Mariah insists not - is a human being – like the rest of us. Just because of what he did to me… even though he did that, itdoesn't make him any less human. And if anyone should hold hate towards him, it should be me, not you. Lee…" He gripped the Lion's forearm with a wet hand. "Don't try to fight my battles for me. I'm a big boy now."
They shared a laugh together.
"But, Lee? Do me a favour, would you?"
"Anything."
"Keep your sister away from here, kay?"
"…I forgot to add in 'within reason'… fine, Ray, yeah… I trust you… besides, I'd go insane if I woke up to pink…"
Ray chuckled as the Lion left the small hut.
He paused, however, with hesitation.
"Bryan… I know you're awake."
"…I swear to God I'm not."
Ray cocked his head to one side. "Why do you say that?"
The Tiger watched moonlight orbs open and the Falcon sat up slowly. Bryan ruffled his silver hair, making strands fall before his sleepy eyes.
"Because you're here… or I'm here… this has to be a dream/nightmare-unreal thing – Oh for crying out loud…"
His hand – the one he had ruffled his hair with – bore bloodstains; liquid but also dry flakes.
"I just keep showing new wounds, don't I?"
Ray resisted the urge to smile and walked over with a damp cloth. He perched on the edge of the bed.
"Let me…?"
The Falcon grunted with a small nod.
Ray placed the cloth on the mattress before submerging slim fingers in the metallic strands of the Falcon. He parted some locks and amber eyes scanned the scalp for any sight of a laceration-
Until he found one. On the side of Bryan's head, measuring the length of an average thumb and leaking new droplets of blood.
Ray brought the damp rag to the wound and dabbed around the edges, collecting blood within the tightly knitted fibres – not once did Bryan flinch or wince.
"There… there's a shower in the next room if you want to wash…" Ray began.
"You wouldn't happen to have something bigger, would you?"
Ray blinked and scooted round to look Bryan in the eyes. "What do you mean?"
"Waterfall, maybe?"
Ray couldn't help but smile a fanged grin.
Bryan couldn't help but sigh in contentment when the freezing water droplets flecked against his skin. He gave a small groan when he stepped fully under the falls, torso and feet bare, only his cargos clothing him.
Nearby, Ray sat on a flat rock, also beneath the spray of the powerful waterfall. He was sat in the lotus position, eyes closed in meditation.
Bryan looked over at the Tiger – the boy who was once his nemesis. The sun-kissed face was relaxed, almost smiling, and his position upon the rock did not falter or hide away from the pounding water of the gigantic waterfall which he was fully under… Bryan would have thought the slim and lithe frame wouldn't last long under the hammering falls…
But he shook his head. He had underestimated Ray once before… he mustn't do it again…
But why was Ray looking after him?
Wait, that's why – he didn't trust the healers in the village because of what he had done in Russia…
Russia… his home… God how he missed it… the snow, the cold… his comrades… heck, he even missed Kai!
He sighed heavily and leant back against the rock behind him, rubbing closed eyes.
Unbeknownst to the Falcon, amber eyes had opened and looked at him with interest. He watched as moonlight eyes were unleashed, staring out at the blue, midday sky, watching the wispy white clouds glide leisurely across the blue horizon. The silvery-lilac orbs softened after every blink, but, even from the distance, Ray could see slivers of pain and sadness dance around within.
"Bryan?" He asked carefully, standing and moving over to the Russian.
Bryan blinked in slight surprise and turned to look at the Tiger. "Yeah…?"
"You okay?" Ray didn't know how to arrange his facial muscles to display an emotion – which he didn't know.
"…" Bryan hesitated. He looked Ray straight in the eye. "Why do you care?"
He didn't ask spitefully or viciously. It was a general question, filled with confusion and asked quietly.
Ray shrugged and looked out where Bryan had been staring before. "Because a certain father-figure of yours convinced me to."
Bryan couldn't help but smirk. "Yelkov… devious Hawk…"
Ray pressed further. "There's something else on your mind, Bryan."
Bryan didn't reply.
"Bryan if you don't tell me, I can't help you."
"Ray, there's nothing you can do to help me with this matter. So just zip it and carry on with your healing bit or whatever you do. I doubt even Tala could help me if he were here, let alone you."
The retort stung slightly, but it was only a bee sting compared to what Bryan could say.
"Can you at least tell me what's up? I may not be able to help in the way you think, but…"
Bryan looked sharply at Ray and the Tiger swore the moonlight eyes were not human for a few seconds… like falcons' eyes…
He suddenly found himself pushed up against the rock behind the falls. Unfortunately for him, this part of the falls blocked off view for both him and anyone looking in.
He looked up at Bryan with confused amber eyes, slender hands grasping the thick wrists of the muscular arms that were pinning him to the rock wall. He swallowed thickly.
"B-Bryan?"
"You know of the rebel attack that demolished half my base, killed almost a dozen of my men and almost took my own life, right? But do you know the rebels?"
Ray frowned. "Why would I?"
"Because they mentioned you numerous times, Kon…" The Falcon brought his face nearer to the Tiger's. "Apparently, they've stayed in your village many times… but it doesn't matter if you don't know them, Kon. I do… unfortunately…
"Tell me, Ray, since you – like Kai – are the betrayer in a way, have you ever thought of how the betrayed feel?" The face came even closer and Ray felt Bryan's breath on his cheeks, nose and lips. The Russian's musky scent also filled his senses, even if they were being soaked by water. "What I'm about to tell you must not reach the ears of others – let alone Yelkov."
Everything seemed to stand still. The sounds of nature seemed to quieten to once again listen – the wind stilled, the birds were silenced, the waterfall seemed to slow…
Waiting…