Abhorsen's Training
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Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Garth Nix's Abhorsen Trilogy in any way, shape, or form.
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Chapter 10: Rescue
There they were!
Sabriel wanted to shout out profanities. The Paperwing was in ashes, they had few supplies, and Naruto was injured… badly. Asrylil was going to kill her.
She whistled a short series of Charter Marks to bank the Paperwing. It didn't respond quite as smoothly as it should have. That gale had been fierce…
Flashback
Without her direction, the wind picked up. She suddenly realized that it had been stronger for some moments, but had been picking up gradually. Then it was gone. For an absurd second, she wondered if she had imagined that wind.
But the Paperwing was plummeting.
Hardly pausing to consider what she was doing, she whistled the first Charter Marks that came into her mind. She was glad that her instinct had summoned the right ones…
They had leveled out. But they were going in the wrong direction – straight for the trees of the Great Sickle Wood. This was not exactly how she had wanted to enter it.
Whistling more Charter Marks raised them above the deadly branches. They just barely clipped the tops of the trees. Flying straight up into the sky, Sabriel recovered her senses…
She turned the Paperwing, not realizing how slowly it reacted. Her mind felt battered. Maybe Paperwing travel was cursed…
As she slowly glided over the Wood, she saw where she had hit the trees. Sheets of blue laminated paper were caught on some of the branches, and some boughs had been ripped from their trunks.
She winced internally at the damage. She knew she had to land.
The landing brought the Paperwing's damage to her attention. It wasn't a smooth landing by any standards. The Paperwing slid to an ungraceful stop on its belly. She hoped no further damage had been caused.
To her relief, the emergency landing didn't do any more harm that she could see. She knelt under one of the wings and examined it. The problem was obvious. Those laminated sheets that had been torn from the wing were full of guiding Charter Marks. True, the craft could still fly, but it wouldn't be so responsive on this side, nor would it fly so well.
She was forced to do a quick patch job, trying to guess which Marks to use. She had to find the boys…
End Flashback
"Which one of you idiots called that wind?!" Sabriel nearly screeched the moment she was out of the Paperwing.
Neji looked at her coolly. She wanted to slap him silly. "Naruto."
She strode over to the inert body and bent over it before she realized that that was the answer to her question.
She really wanted to scream.
"What happened?" she asked snappishly.
Neji gave the report without emotion, and concluded with "He's got at least three, probably four, broken ribs and very likely a concussion."
Sabriel muttered an unintelligible phrase, possibly including curses and "Asrylil", before saying, "His injuries are beyond me. He's got to go to Belisaere."
"Yes."
"You and Uchiha will have to stay here. The Paperwing is damaged, and it will be risky even with only two people."
"Yes, Abhorsen."
"Help me get him to the Paperwing."
"Yes, Abhorsen."
His passive attitude made her want to strangle him. However, Sabriel tried to stay calm. She couldn't afford to explode right now.
They finally managed to settle Naruto in the Paperwing. It had taken some ingenuity, and the removal of all four packs, before they got it. Sabriel took back her own pack, and climbed in.
"If you two get into any trouble, I will murder you when I get back!" she shouted as the Paperwing took off.
"She's lovely, isn't she?" Sasuke muttered.
"She reminds me of Tenten," Neji said.
"That's the Abhorsen for you," Mogget said grumpily.
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A/N: I know it's short, but you get two at the same time, so you can't complain too much. At long last, we get to meet Hinata in the next chapter. So review, and maybe I'll update faster.