Faerthurin was not the only restless one. Lucid found himself unable to sleep as she had prior to Jalerom's soothing embrace, and he perched himself on top of the tower room to try and relax himself. Unlike her, he had no a'mael to hold him, and he totally wasn't jealous. He surveyed the city from his lofty perch and caught a glimpse of Oin and Amber standing on Oin's balcony. His feathers ruffled in intrigue, but Fae had lectured him on spying, so he did not go to peek.
He also noticed that his dear Rose was sleeping alone in the gardens. Where was the fluffy gray oaf that usually accompanied her? He should be protecting a vulnerable lady in her sleep! In a fit of indignation, he swooped down lower to see if he could find the dog and give him a stern talking to. When he was nowhere to be found in the gardens, Lucid flitted around the palace. He finally found Shiloh in the main courtyard, but this time on the balcony where Jeminya had been standing. The canine was lying with his body curled around what appeared to be scratch marks left by Jeminya's nails as she tried to prevent herself from being dragged away.
"Shiloh!" Lucid squawked as he landed on the balcony railing, but the dog did not raise his head. Shiloh instead let out a whine and curled even tighter around the marks.
"Shiloh, you are supposed to be with Rose! How dare you leave my golden blossom alone!" Lucid reprimanded, but with only half the heart he normally had. He hopped over to look at the scratches himself; as they dragged further back, he could see flecks of purple and even chunks of a few nails. She had tried her hardest to hold on. He could even see where the toes of her metal boots dug in, and for a moment Lucid could hear her scream again. He whipped his head around to make sure he was just imagining it and then flitted over to perch on Shiloh's head.
"Come on now, you great mass of fur, we need to get back to our people! How would Rose feel if she woke and couldn't find you?" Lucid squawked indignantly, and slowly Shiloh groaned and got to his feet. He plodded further into the palace back to where the team had encountered Simula for the final time. Both dog and bird stopped when they came upon the remains of the battle. Crumbled chunks of rack lay where the hand had dissolved, there were scorch marks and cracked tiles on the floor, and the furniture was smashed beyond repair. The orb that had been behind Simula lay shattered in tiny shards on the ground, and it was to both of their liking. At least she was gone too.
Sadly, Shiloh found the stairs leading to the lower floors, and Lucid almost felt bad for scolding the gentle beast. He was suffering just as much as any of the humanoids his mistress loathed, and Lucid didn't have the heart to keep pestering him. He scratched his foot on Shiloh's head gently, and the dog stopped.
"Shall we raid the kitchen? Rose and Fairy Face may wake up hungry; they didn't eat much today at all," he offered, and Shiloh padded a little more perkily to where he smelled food. Lucid smiled to himself; the canine was very easy to read. If it helped his person, he'd do it.
The two followed Shiloh's nose and they soon came across the cavernous kitchen, empty and hollow-feeling. Lucid hopped off Shiloh's head and strutted his way across the counters.
"Open your bags, Shiloh!" Lucid ordered, and Shiloh used his nose to nudge loose the straps on the bags at his sides and positioned himself next to the counter. Lucid carefully rolled apples, peaches, and pomegranates into the bag, and Shiloh panted happily. The bird found that he, too, was cheering up a bit. It felt nice to possibly help their humans.
The two animals then proceeded over to the dried goods pantry, and Shiloh nudged the door open with his snout. Lucid flitted up to the higher shelves and spotted a large stash of jerky.
"Open wide, fluff face!" he called down, and Shiloh obeyed hungrily. The bird pushed a chunk of the jerky off the shelf and into the waiting maw of the dog. Shiloh chewed happily and positioned himself so that the food would land in the other bag that had not been filled with fruit. Aiming carefully, Lucid pushed a few more pieces of jerky into the bag, then hopped down one shelf to add a bag of dried berries for himself. Satisfied, he perched on Shiloh's head once again and ordered, "To Fae and Jalerom's room! We'll work our way down!"
The mighty steed launched himself toward the door when a male servant came into the kitchens with a lantern and spotted them. He shouted, "Shoo! Get out of here!" and reached to grab the food in Shiloh's bag. Shiloh growled indignantly, and the servant jerked his hand away.
"See here, mutt, that food is not for you!" he snapped and reached for the bag again.
Lucid roared angrily, "Now YOU see here, you ignorant ingrate! We are heroes of Alatastica and the reason you still have a city left to call home! I suggest you stop bullying us this instant or I will inform my mistress and have you sacked!"
Obviously the servant did not understand him, but nevertheless his arm went slack and he backed away from the livid raven, muttering, "The bird just spoke. That bird just spoke to me. My gods…" Quickly he scurried back to where the servants' chambers were assumed to be, and Lucid puffed up his feathers proudly. Shiloh proudly strutted over to the stairs leading to the upper floors where most of their party had taken residence with Lucid preening triumphantly on his head.
After a long and winding trek up the tower stairs, the two reached the topmost room, and Shiloh nudged the doorknob the right way to open it. Carefully and as quietly as he could, Lucid transported two apples and a pomegranate over to the bedside table near Faerthurin's head. He knew she'd see it and probably want to share the pomegranate with Jalerom – exactly why he'd made sure to get one – and then placed the bag of dried berries next to his hoarded nest on the dresser. Satisfied with their good deed, the two animals bounded happily down the stairs once more.
Using Shiloh's keen sense of smell, they quickly located the room of Ivan, Amber, and the buffoon's son Reiyn. First, however, he paused at the door beside it. He pressed his nose against the door and let out a plaintive whine, and Lucid understood.
They had found Jeminya's room.
"Come on, Shiloh, if you think for one minute that they'll let her rot down there, I'll have you eat your tail," Lucid huffed, trying to disguise his own worry, but Shiloh's eyes rolled upward to look at him. The bird hopped off the dog's head and over to the other door impatiently, trying to avoid Shiloh's knowing stare. "Hurry up! They might wake up!"
This time, Shiloh complied (though Lucid could almost taste his amused pity) and softly pushed the door open. They were greeted by loud snores coming from the dragon, and Lucid rolled his eyes at the fact that the smaller two could so easily sleep through it. He lifted the majority of the jerky onto the bedside table next to Amber as well as an apple while Shiloh delivered two peaches and a pomegranate to Ivan and Reiyn's bedside table.
With one last forlorn look at Jeminya's bedroom, the two followed Shiloh's nose to Oin's room, which also smelled of Jeminya, Lucid was sure, though much less so. The canine almost refused to enter the chamber, decorated with paintings and drawings and toys as it was, but Lucid pecked his head until he went in. Hastily, Shiloh left Oin the rest of the jerky and one of the apples before beating a speedy retreat to the sound of Lucid hissing a frustrated, "Shiloh!"
Finally, the two unlikely companions reached the gardens where Rose slept, a troubled look on her brow. Gently, Lucid placed the remaining apple, peach, and pomegranate a decent distance away, and Shiloh curled up next to her. At the feeling of his weight and warmth, the troubled look seemed to fade a bit, and Lucid smiled.
"We did a good thing, Shiloh," he said and patted Shiloh's head with his wing. The dog licked the full body of the raven, who sputtered crossly. Shiloh whined once more.
"We will get Jeminya back, mutt, and—"
Shiloh shook his head and drew an arrow and a squiggly line in the dirt by his paw. Lucid closed his eyes.
"I don't know how they will fare. I hope, for her sake, that Jaylen is well. The buffoon, however…" Lucid sighed, "I know not what to make of him. He's an idiot, and a nearly irredeemable one. I don't care what that Romena girl promised the child. My concerns lie with Jaylen – innocent in all this and sweeter than any snake has a right to be – and the child. Fairy Face has gotten a little attached to him and… I can see the value in him, even if he does annoy me to no end. He did evacuate Gatless Town for us, after all. Saved more lives than anyone will give him credit for and— …shut up, Shiloh."
Shiloh snorted with a definite smile and smudged out the drawings. He laid his head on his paws and heaved a great sigh, his eyes heavy as they threatened to close. Lucid nodded, patted his friend's head one last time, and set off for his nest and his bag of berries.
Once he had settled into his nest – made of scarves and scraps of fabric he'd found and a soldier's helm for the base – and plucked a few berries out for himself, he, too, felt his eyes heavy-laden with sleep. He worried for one moment more about Jeminya and what would happen to the party over the next little while without her, but he shook it off. It wasn't as though he could affect much, so why worry?
Easier said than done, and he fell asleep with a belly full of berries and a mind full of worries.