Kaji was just about to respond when a figure went running by at full tilt. It was one of the forward scouts dedicated to watching the movements of the herd. Another zipped past only a few moments later. The final scout's sprint was halted by Arisa who rose and demanded to know what was happening.

"The herd, mam! The herd is on the move!"

"And all three of you need to run back to tell us that... why?" Her tone was that of a superior calling someone under her a fool.

"Mam, the herd is coming this way!" Forgetting who he was talking to, the scout sprinted off toward the village.

"The herd coming... this way?" Arisa and Kaji both turned at the distant grunting and crying of a heard of ostrich running. Only... their cries were the sounds of terror and warning.

They scrambled to their feet in unison, dumping unfinished meals to the ground and scooping up blankets before following in the wake of the three scouts.

Only moments had passed, but the mobile village was in chaos when Kaji and Arisa passed through the outer rings of tents. The elders were scattered throughout the camp barking orders to try to minimize the damage caused to their possessions.

Their efforts were futile. Nothing in the village – structures, people or tools – could withstand the power of the coming stampede.

"Come on, Arisa! We have to go!" Arisa had stopped to help another of the clan to secure a bundle to his back.

"It's my responsibility to help the people of the clan! If anyone dies, it should be me!" She screamed back at him as she moved on to help the same person with hurriedly tying bundles to their children's backs.

Kaji grabbed her arm, "All of the elders are thinking that! If you all die, who will lead us then?"

She looked at him coldly, "Others will take my place." She shook of his arm and went back to work.

"But Aris-"

"Go! Get your things!" She was running off to the aid of the next person as she yelled her orders.

Kaji just stood there, torn. Arisa had given him orders, but what he wanted to do was the exact opposite of those orders. What he wanted to do was grab Arisa by the ear and drag her kicking and screaming out of the crumbling camp.

For the first time in a long while, authority won. Something within Kaji knew that Arisa would hate him for trying to drag her away; so he ran.

His was one of the few tents left standing amongst the chaos. The rest had either been hastily packed up or knocked over in the flurry of action. Fires were once again blazing across the village, this time consuming tents, tools, and lives unhindered. There was no time to spare for putting them out.

Bursting through the flaps, Kaji was happy to see that his things had remained untouched, though it crushed him to know that he would need to leave almost all of his inventions behind.

He upended his satchel into the middle of the tent, the crystals cascading onto the ground. The lifestone fell out last, landing with a distinct ping on the very top of the crystal heap; it was glowing furiously.

Kaji took no note as he went around the room like a whirlwind, gathering everything he could into his satchel. In went several small pouches of dried meat and fruit – snacks that he liked to keep stashed away for those late nights spent working – and a skin of water. His tools went next: mallet, spanner, chisel, his painstakingly made twine, and several small cutting implements, including his diamond knife, wrapped tightly in cloth. On top went one of his two changes of clothes and a travelling cloak, and his goggles.

He closed his satchel with finality and scooped up his blanket. He was about to rush back out the flap when something caught his eye. There, leaning against one of the walls, was his first failed pair of eagle's wings. He knew that they were not worth taking – that he could take so many other things that would be of such greater benefit – but they were the things that had lead to his current crowning achievement.

Those faulty wings were slung onto his back as he left.

He had only gone three paces away from his tent when the cold crystal of the Lifestone appeared into his hand underneath the blanket. He had forgotten the stone in his rush to gather everything, but it most certainly had not forgotten him.

Kaji furiously deposited the stone into his satchel as the first chorus of screams rose from the other side of the camp. His head snapped to face them, and through the smoke of the tents he could see the ostrich heard rumbling through the camp.

There was no time. People were dashing by him as quickly as they could, while a few of the hunters stayed behind and valiantly tried to halt the advance of the stampede. Their dying efforts would amount to nothing but a few extra seconds for the clan in flight. It didn't matter how many spikes or walls of earth their hunters called from the ground, the herd just kept coming.

Kaji did not freeze in terror this time, but rather started flocking with the rest of his clan, hoping vainly to outrun the crushing feet and slashing beaks of his food source.

Then he was there. On the back edge of the camp stood Rattan, like a boulder that refused to be moved by the flood. "What are you doing here?" Kaji called out to him, though his words were impossible to hear over the fast-approaching thunder.

Rattan simply beckoned to Kaji, calling him. The birds were so close now, Kaji wasn't sure if he could make it. They were so close!

Then Arisa was at Rattan's side, and a chorus of hoarse screams rose from the throats of several birds behind him. Kaji didn't even want to think of the brief pain those birds would suffer.

As soon as Kaji's hand touched Rattan's, the world went dark except for one tiny shaft of light that shone on Rattan's bronzed face pinched in concentration.

The rumble of the passing herd sounded like thunder through the walls of their stone shelter, a constant reminder that the only thing between them and certain death was Rattan's ability to hold his focus.

The time passed in terror, waiting for the sound of cracking stone that would herald an early return to the planet.

That sound never came, and the thunder of the passing herd finally faded to a distant rumble. As soon as it was safe, Rattan swooned and collapsed to the ground.

Kaji and Arisa on their knees in an instant, "He's burning up!" Kaji exclaimed as he touched Rattan's arm. He felt like he had just come out from a bed of coals.

Arisa was already handling it though, and after a few moments a patch of ice formed under Rattan's prone body. She was one of the few in their clan that could summon water and ice. Doing so in the dry heat of summer was difficult, but no amount of difficulty could be to much for the one who just saved her life. "Wake up Rattan," she was gently shaking his arm and tapping his face, "wake up!"

"He's out, Arisa. I couldn't imagine how difficult it was to hold that barrier against the stampede." And so soon after protecting me! Kaji couldn't even begin to imagine the amount of energy Rattan had expended to keep the thousands of tons of stone from crushing them while waiting to be rescued. In fact, now that he thought about it, Rattan shouldn't have been able to do that at all, let alone with such ease!

He looked down at his unconscious friend. What secrets are you hiding from me, Rattan?

After another while, the distant thunder faded. Kaji dared not take his eyes off Rattan's tired features. He knew what he would see when he lifted his head. The mere thought made his stomach turn and tears run freely from his eyes.

Arisa felt the same way. She wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face into his shoulder. The last week had been so traumatic for her. First, she nearly lost her two best friends, then discovered that one was the worst criminal in the history of their clan, and then lost that clan to a freak stampede. In short: She was a wreck, and Kaji understood.

He hugged her as she sobbed, his own sobs stifled but his tears flowing freely as they sat under the hot morning sun. Distantly Kaji heard the cries of the carrion birds overhead.