James Buchanan Barnes lay in the snow on his back, wondering how he managed to survive a fall from such a height. The snow was drifting down around him as he stared up at the sky through half-closed eyes. His left arm was reduced to half his bicep. The rest of it was lying close by. He had hit a hunk of rock jutting out from the mountain on the way down. His blood stained the snow where his stump lay. The combination of extreme cold and snow was the thing keeping him from bleeding out. His breathing was shallow. He was pretty sure he had some internal injuries. He felt afraid of dying out here alone. Steve was long gone now, no doubt believing him dead and unable to reach him, and the other Howling Commandos had no idea where he was either. So he just waited for the end. He was a dead man no matter what happened. He didn't blame Steve. They had tried to reach each other. Steve had tried to pull him back to safety. But they had been too far apart and the bar that he had been clinging to gave out, sending him falling to his apparent death.
Bucky just lay there in the snow. His other limbs still worked but it was like he had lost all his strength when he hit the ground. The night would be coming soon. He wanted to cry. Rage at his condition and how he was condemned to death in the mountains. But as much as he wanted to, Bucky felt nothing. Not even pain from the freezing conditions and the loss of his left arm. Even thoughts were slow in crossing his mind as he aimlessly watched the snow fall around and on him. That's when he heard them. Footsteps. Heavy ones. He also heard loud breathing. It registered somewhere in his head that it wasn't human breathing. It was too deep-chested to be human and he was hearing the footfalls of four feet in a steady rhythm, not two. Blue-grey eyes slowly looked down his body and widened slightly when he saw the huge animal approaching him. He had to be imagining things. The animal looked like a horse but those were definitely horns he saw adorning its head. Silver fur covered the animal's body and he could make out what looked like scales on its shoulders but given it was facing him straight on, it was hard to tell.
The animal came to a stop at his feet. Bucky's eyes were open a bit wider as he tried to figure out what he was looking at. This close, he could see that the animal's horns were thick, not at all smooth like normal horns, and configured in which the straight horn was terminating from the vertex of a pair of curled ones. He didn't know whether to be relieved that he wasn't going to die alone or terrified because he couldn't comprehend what he was supposed to be looking at. The animal defied all comprehension to his mind. "So you're still alive. I saw you fall. Never expected that a human could survive such a tumble and at those speeds," it...she...suddenly spoke. Bucky's mind was starting to pick up on things faster and he felt terror lance through him. Animals shouldn't talk but she was talking to him. In English even. There was no way she could actually exist. Was he hallucinating? Was he closer to death than he thought? His heart pounded in his throat and he subconsciously shifted as if he wanted to get up and run away from this...thing. However, his body refused to cooperate and he looked helplessly at the monster, his breathing growing more erratic.
What looked like pity crossed over the animal's face as she took in the pitiful state Bucky was in. She moved so she stood on his right side. That's when he saw the scales and the tail. The scales were gold and hexagonal on her shoulders and thighs. She also sported eight different colored scales that stretched across her back. The tail got him even more than the scales did. It was a scorpion's. Bucky wondered if she was going to put him out of his misery with that thing and he didn't bother to question whether or not she could actually use it. Surprise managed to cut through his fear when she dropped to her knees and brought the rest of her body down, shielding him from the wind somewhat. She then swung her head over rest it on his chest, her curled horns jabbing him slightly. Bucky still couldn't speak. All he could do was look at her and noted that her eyes were a shade of violet. The eye facing him met his gaze and he could swear she smiled gently at him. "Just...stay calm. I'm not going to hurt you," she said. She closed her eyes and Bucky felt a warm sensation ripple down his body. The epicenter of the ripple effect was from where her head rested and he could feel it down to the tips of his remaining limbs. He noticed that her silver horns were also glowing faintly. The remains of his left arm felt as if the skin was being knitted together but a quick look revealed it was just the feeling of it but not in reality.
He felt warm as if he were being shielded from the cold by more than just her body. He also felt a calm settle over him. He finally gained enough strength to shift a little, causing her visible eye to open and look at him. "W-why...?" he croaked, his voice hoarse from the screaming he did on the way down. "Why indeed. Normally, I avoid your kind. Humans made me and humans show me nothing but contempt simply for being. Not that animals are any better. My kind isn't looked at very kindly in most cases and I'm little more than an abomination. But watching you fall, I was compelled to help. It took me a while to find you and even then, I had to wrestle with myself on whether or not to actually do this. I'm afraid...I don't have an answer for you beyond that," she replied. Bucky ran his tongue over his dry, chapped lips. "Are you healing me?" he asked. "As best I can. I'm afraid, given what I am, whatever magic I possess isn't the greatest. If I was fully a unicorn instead of the chimera I am, I'd be able to heal you with no problem. Can't save your arm though. That's beyond saving and even if it wasn't, I doubt magic could stitch it back onto your body," she replied.
Bucky found himself believing every word she said. About how she was a chimera with unicorn ancestry and how she had magic. After all, she was lying right there next to him with her head on his chest and a warm feeling that continued to radiate from where they had contact down his body. He found himself wondering where she came from and if she had a name. She called herself an abomination but Bucky thought differently. There was this strange, otherworldly quality about her that made her one of the most beautiful animals he had ever seen. After the shock of seeing her for the first time, every unnatural thing about her seemed to come together in the most natural way possible. Like horses were supposed to have scales, horns, and scorpion tails. Like they were supposed to be silver with violet eyes.
He wanted to touch her but he still couldn't move and even if he could, his right arm was trapped between their bodies. "I can't move," he said. "It's the shock. Missing arm aside, your body is still intact. You did have some internal injuries but I already healed those. Plus hitting the rock that took your arm on the way down slowed your fall a little and the snow itself cushioned your landing. You're lucky." she replied. Bucky's eyes found their way back to the sky and mountains above. "I'm going to die out here. Aren't I," he said, rather than asked. The animal sighed a little. "To be honest, I don't know if I can save you. You took quite the spill and while I did the best I could with what I have, we're still in the middle of some godforsaken mountains with no settlements in sight. I wouldn't know which direction to take you if I tried to move you myself. I'm sorry. You could still die out here despite my efforts," she said. Her voice carried a thick layer of regret that Bucky found rather soothing.
"Thank you anyway, doll. Even if I do end up biting it, at least I won't be alone. You did your best," he said, his voice growing a bit fainter. The animal raised her head a little to look at him a bit more fully. He gave her a small cocksure, but pained, smile before his eyes slid shut. He was losing consciousness but he tried to hang on for as long as he could. He still had a question for her. "Do you have a name?" he asked, his voice even weaker. "It's Phoenix. Like the firebird," he heard her reply. "James Buchanan Barnes. Friends...call me Bucky. It was nice to meet you," the sergeant said. He finally lost the battle to stay awake and he fell into oblivion.
Phoenix knew she lost him to unconsciousness but she remained in place and kept the healing effects going. She wondered if her mother could've done better. This man...Bucky...was young and strong despite his injuries. If he got really lucky and someone happened along, he could survive it. She had told him the truth that she generally avoided humans. She just didn't know why she felt she had to try and save this one. Something about his plight moved her and she didn't want to just walk away from him when he was in need.
Plus it wasn't as if she had anywhere to be. Her Road led her to this world and promptly abandoned her there. She had been stranded there for about a year or so, waiting for it to reveal itself. She had learned quickly that this was a world at war. The humans had their reasons for fighting and the weapons they wielded were unlike anything she had ever seen at home. The war here reminded her of the stories she learned about the Faction Wars that had taken place centuries ago in her homeworld. Keeping the healing pulses going, Phoenix raised her head to the sky above, her eyes shining with heartbreak. What was taking so long for her Road to come back? While she managed to avoid active battlefields that riddled the land, the war was inescapable. She still came across fields scarred from shells and littered with the bodies of the dead, their still-living comrades searching for survivors. It was a nightmare world she was trapped in and she had no idea how to get out. Why did humans have to solve their problems with this kind of violence?
She looked down at Bucky, his breathing still ragged from the trauma he suffered from the fall. He appeared to be out of immediate danger but if he wasn't found by his people soon, he was going to die here at her side and she could nothing further to save him. All she could do was try to keep his core warm and protect him from the wolves she knew haunted the area. Fortunately, she could sense the weather wasn't going to get worse. The snow was still gently drifting down and it was likely going to break before the sun rose. It was the night she was afraid of. Temperatures were going to drop and that would probably kill Bucky before his severed arm did. Phoenix would be fine. Genbu's North got cold like this at night the farther north she was. She also ran much hotter than humans. Perhaps if she was careful about it, she could manage to keep him warm until the sun rose. After that, it was going to be hard deciding what to do next. Bucky wasn't waking up anytime soon and if he wasn't found soon, his odds of survival dropped to nothing.
Phoenix gently used her head to bring Bucky's body closer to her and resumed the position of her head across his chest. She entertained the idea of humanshifting to give him more cover but decided against it. She had already spooked him in her true form. No need to make things awkward. The sun was already behind the mountains by this point and the temperature was starting to fall. Phoenix's violet eyes slowly closed and she fell into a light sleep. It was only natural. She was in unknown territory with predators around so she had to be quick to protect both herself and Bucky if the need arose.
The morning broke and Phoenix woke up. Bucky had made it through the night. His breathing was a bit more stable but he wasn't out of danger yet. The chimera's ears caught voices and she raised her head. She turned her head to look behind her, her ears stuck straight up as it appeared the voices were approaching from behind. Not wanting to be caught by anyone else, Phoenix got to her hooves and retreated into a small cave nearby. She was still close enough to intervene if she felt Bucky was in danger but safely tucked away to avoid detection. Her tail twitched as a few people came into view. One of them was a short man with an ill-favored look. Something about this bunch didn't seem right but they were Bucky's only hope. "Sergeant Barnes?" the short man questioned. Seemed Bucky had woken up when she made her hasty retreat.
"Where is she?" she heard the young man asked in a raspy voice. "Who do you mean?" the other man asked. "Phoenix. Where did she go?" Bucky asked again. "I'm afraid we found you alone. Rest easy now. We'll take good care of you," the other man said. Bucky didn't even protest as he was lifted onto a stretcher and carried off. Phoenix stayed in the cave. Part of her wanted to go after them and force them to give him back to her. The short man had an accented voice that wasn't like Bucky's and that made her wonder if she had done the right thing in just letting them walk away with him. Her avoidance of the war at large kept her largely in the dark about who had what motivations and if those motivations were good or bad. Something stayed her hooves as if him getting taken away was meant to happen. For good or ill, she didn't but she couldn't bring herself to ruin Bucky's only chance at real help.
Stepping from the shadows, Phoenix watched as the small group rounded a bend out of sight. Sighing, the chimera went to the place where Bucky had landed. The snow clearly showed something large had been next to him and her hoof prints. She knew she hadn't been seen and yet, no one questioned why it seemed a thousand-pound animal had been nearby. Lowering her nose to the indent his body had made, she could still smell him. It was a scent awash in fear, sorrow, and confusion. Yet, under that, she could smell the faintest trace of hope. Bucky had held on through the night because of the hope he had for rescue. Phoenix had no idea if letting those strange men take him was the right call but she decided to trust in the hope he left behind that things would work out. Then, at long last, she felt her Road open up to her. Phoenix looked over her shoulder where Bucky and those men had disappeared. "Be safe, James Buchanan Barnes. Maybe if Fate is kind, we'll cross paths again," she said aloud. Turning away, she vanished from sight as if she had never been.