Emergence
She sat on the cold rock and stared down at the very dark water between the cliffs of ice. The water here was very, very deep. So deep even that the unknown things swam in these dark waters and were dangerous to any other kin that would hunt fish here. Well, not counting the great-tusk. She had her thought-power over life-fires, and the one-tusked-kin had its massive size.
This range, far outside of Ice-Water-Pack's territory, was where she had first seen that one-tusked-kin which she had met and spoken with once before. Having touched its thoughts and life-fire in that one prior meeting, she knew that it had come out of the hidden world above and had found a way into these ranges.
Finding that one-tusked-kin and the way into the above was very important. It would tell her all that she needed to know if only she could find that great kin. There was no way to make it appear. All she could do was wait for it and hunt in these waters to pass the time.
Her thoughts kept wanting to fly back to the kin she knew in Ice-Water-Pack: to Blue, Green, Yellow, Alpha, Oldest-Knower, Ice, and all the others besides. That her thoughts and liver kept wanting to fly to those kin was like a test of determination. It was as if life itself was giving an obstacle to fly over and therefore become stronger.
There was some suffering and hurting from being away from all whom she knew, but suffering was also a way to grow stronger and more able to do what was needed. If this was a small sacrifice, it was not so bad. Those other kin were not true friends anyway. They did not need her or want her.
More importantly, she had to learn what those two-legs were. That was somehow very important.
She perched on the greatest light-rock of all as countless kin flew home to safety. They flew down far distant cave-paths into the world which belonged to kin only and always would. She would need to use them, encourage them, and nudge them to help break all the paths once they flew. That would forever shut the monsters out!
There were too many kin for the hidden ranges; that was unavoidable, but it was a small loss for the kin-kinds. The weak ones would die, leaving only the strong to make eggs and continue. The lone ones end, but the kinds live on and become greater.
It would hurt the liver when each glowing life-fire ended. She could touch them all, for a spark of her life-fire flamed in all their livers. But she had to remain strong and defiant. Those sparks would be reclaimed when each kin flew to the ever-sleep.
The greatest sacrifices, for the greater good, required the greatest of wills!
She felt a thought-touch from a powerful kin: the last of the great-tusks. The only kin-kinds with brightly-burning life-fires were herself, the great-tusks, the dark wings, the light wings, and one Hunter-kin which was spared and allowed to be more than its kind.
She flew to the nearest waters where the great-tusk could show itself.
The cave-path glowed with light from her wings. No other could burn so bright and drip with light like a waterfall, even if flying was tiring. She was not as young or strong as she once had been.
She arrived at the water-range and saw the great-tusk waiting for her as she was the Highest-Alpha of all.
The great-tusk slowly turned in the water to face her. That was when she saw what had happened to it. One of its tusks was broken and gone. One of its eyes was also missing. It was no longer an Alpha at all.
She stared into its remaining eye, their life-fires touched, and she knew what it had lived. A pair of dark wings defeated it and became Alphas for many kin. Why had the dark wings fought it? What had it done to be attacked by that kin-kind?
Clarity and revelation.
'You forgot your purpose!' she roared with thought-voice.
The great-tusk closed its eye and moaned, 'Watching kin collecting kin needing kin wanting more more more... lost now...'
'Yes, lost. Find them, protect them, and bring them here was the command. But you kept them for yourself. Collecting and keeping! Not protecting!'
'Wrong me yes. Wanting more needing more never stopping more need. Fair not. Lost now...'
The worst action this great-tusk did was that it killed one of its own kind. A great protector turned against its own kin.
'You killed your kin!'
'Wrong me yes. Lost now...'
The great-tusks were to serve, watch over the kin beyond the hidden ranges, and protect the kin in the above. They were like lesser High-Alphas protecting kin in the many ranges of the dangerous world above. Some numbers of kin had to fly the above instead of the hidden ranges.
Some rebelled and rejected her, wanting instead to become Highest-Alphas over their own flocks which they were meant to protect as she commanded. There were few great-tusks and other very big kin now. She felt when the last six-eyed club-tail she knew of was killed by a dark wing.
Why was it that dark wings were destroying so many of the great ones of the past? Were dark wings meant to be the only great ones and Alphas of the future? Why did it feel like she had heard that before?
Had someone proclaimed it? Had… She said that it must be so?
This last great-tusk was lost, confused, and lacking any purpose in its life. There were no kin still above and needing to be protected. Well, there were a few, but almost all of those ones bowed to dark wing Alphas as their protectors.
The nearest packs of kin did not need much protecting against great threats, but there were other ranges far from these. Other hidden ranges had more hunters and dangers which she could not always help protect them from.
Perhaps there was something this lost great-tusk could do to help others. Its life-fire had withered, gone cold and weak after it lost its status.
'Go to cold ranges, hunt in the deep waters, kill the kin-hunters, protect the light wings. You have a new purpose!'
Within her thoughts flashed many distant ranges much colder than these ones so the great-tusk could see where it must go.
Its eye blinked as it lifted its head, 'New purpose have? Lost now not?'
'Not lost! Go! Do not forget!'
'Forget will not! Obey Alpha.'
She watched as the great-tusk turned away from her, slipped into the water, and vanished under the surface. Maybe the great-tusk could truly accept this new purpose. It would be a start toward fulfilling its purpose once again.
Satisfied, she returned to the brightest light-rock, to her great perch on which she could watch over kin everywhere. The long flight passed as if in a single wingbeat.
But there was another kin sitting on her light-rock once she returned. The kin looked very like her: having the same shape, colors, and spines. However, this kin was hidden within dark mist or clouds.
Her life-organ skipped a beat and her liver froze when she saw the kin fully.
'Where were you, sire-father?'
Skadi woke up with a weary groan as the sleep-vision passed. She was safe, alone on a cold rock. A quick glance at the deep water showed that the great-tusk had not appeared, nor had she seen it yet in the waking-cycles she had been here.
All was calm and peaceful, but what was the sleep-vision she just had? Something about a light-rock and a flight to somewhere-
No matter. It was just another twisted sleep-vision, one of many she had in her life-flight. Probably her unknown-thinking wondering about this flight she was flying to the above.
Sleep-visions had long ago stopped mattering, unless they were good ones of her sire-father or dam-mother. But those sleep-visions were very rare now.
The water was cold and dark, so dark that there was no light the eyes could see. Life-fires of many-legged-snappers, fish, and other water-life were visible in the distance, but they were not important. They were not what she was here for.
All that mattered was the very big life-fire that could not be anything other than the one-tusked-kin. She swam toward it while feeling its life-fire.
It was the great kin she was looking for.
The one-tusked-kin felt her presence and swam toward her until it floated before her.
'Great one here why you here?' it whispered.
She stretched her glowing wings wide. She was very pleased that it called her a great one, since she was a special kin. Her burning wings gave the light which illuminated the great-tusk's one remaining eye.
'I need help, great-tusk! You know the above.'
'Above danger yes place know.'
'I must go there. How?'
'Big cave water down dark swim up.'
As she thought. There was a cave-path which led up under the water!
'Where?'
A rush of thoughts and images flew between their life-fires. This deep water, a path to another water-range with no plants, down down down, a big cave-mouth with spikes of light-rock, the open waters, and a flickering light high above.
'Long swim that you swim yes no danger yes?'
That was a possibility she had not considered. What if the swim was too long for her? She was a very good swimmer compared to the light wings, but she was not a water-kin like this great-tusk.
This swim might kill her. But that was a risk she had to take for all kin.
'Maybe yes, but I must swim. How long is the swim?'
'Long swim yes maybe long ago me swim you can uncertain maybe yes maybe no.'
'You lead me to place.'
A deep growl of understanding followed and shivered the water as the great-tusk turned away and swam. She followed after it, swimming as fast as she could. She could not quite keep up with the great-tusk, but it seemed to know that since it slowed down for her. She swam at its shoulder to stay ahead of the water-disturbance behind it.
Even down in the cold dark, her liver burned hotter than it ever had before! Nothing compared to this coming exploring of a new, hidden world!
A glance to the one-tusked kin revealed its missing eye. What had happened to make it lose an eye and part of a tusk? All she could think about was a fight with another great-tusk.
Maybe there was a way to know the truth! She was curious, after all.
So she reached out to touch its life-fire and feel more than she had before. Surely it would not object since it knew her already and was a great-thinking kin like her. Their life-fires touched and...
Chasing after a darting shadow ahead, wrath and anger at an offense given, a burning fire-light flying toward her from the side, and... pain. So much pain. Confusion. Command. Leadership. A swarm of kin flying to obey and strike and flame and chase and... lost gone lost confusion failure defeated!
She remembered herself and swam onward without stopping. Something was very twisted and... similar about the one-tusked great-kin. It was, even though it could not fly, a flight-leader once, before it was defeated and stopped being an Alpha.
But all the kin in that flash-vision were not great-tusks; they were other winged-kin. How could this great-tusk command them and lead them?
A spark burning in its life-fire was familiar. That small fire burned differently from the rest of its thoughts.
Within the need to command, lead, and protect was the power to do so. Lesser kin had a spark burning in all their life-fires, and some of those sparks let the kin influence others through life-will-power.
This great spark was very like what her sire-father had, probably because it came from him long ago.
Maybe he gave the great-tusk the power to lead other kin with thought-control.
She was not sure what to think about that possibility. Controlling and using prey-animals was good, but smothering the thoughts and awareness of other kin was very dangerous. What kin, other than her sire-father, could be trusted to have such power?
Why did the one-tusked kin have that power?
A small flame flashed between their life-fires.
A shadow passed before her eyes, turning all to darkness, and...
She realized she was just floating in the water. The one-tusked-kin was also floating beside her, probably waiting for her. Very considerate of him.
'Great tusk, we swim now?'
'Swim yes weak now great will confusion lost...'
He began swimming again toward the surface while rumbling wariness and confusion.
'Confusion why?' she asked.
'Great will gone now lost. Need now not.'
Great will? Was that something about his life-fire or life-will-power?
A glancing touch followed and the spark that had been there before was gone. His life-fire was now only his own. Where had that spark of power gone?
She had no answers. There was so much about the one-tusked-kin's life that she did not know, and did not need to know. They could still share thought-speech. Nothing more was needed.
She perched on a rock-ledge above the waters. She breathed very deeply many times to fill her inside with good air, as she must before any deep dive. Her life-organ beat and flew very fast in her eagerness, but slowing that beat was important.
The water-range was dark and had several cave-paths going in many directions. Those cave-paths probably led to other water-ranges and were how the great-tusk swam through the world. The great-tusk had left her and resumed its hunting of the kin-hunters. It had shared with her everything she needed to know.
The cave-path that led to the above hidden world was down below in the very dark deep.
She crouched, ready to jump and dive into the water, when her thoughts flew to another cave, far away where she had not been in for over three life-making cycles: the cave where her sire-father would sleep in death forever. How many dangerous flights had he flown for others even if that meant he had to leave her and not be there when she was young?
Maybe this was something like that for herself. Part of her liver almost wanted to go back to Ice-Water-Pack and live there in peace with a normal life.
Normal life?
How could she be normal since she had her sire-father's life-water? How could she be normal when she looked so different from everyone else? How could she be normal when her powers were greater than those of other kin?
No, she had to do this and stay strong!
She jumped and dove into the water. Down, down, down past underwater cliffs toward the very dark below.
Time faded as she kicked deeper, using her wings to speed her swimming just like a slow flight in the air. Fish and other water-life were disturbed at her passing, though she did not hunt any of them.
The only light came from a few light-rocks in the distance. Those light-rocks marked the cave-path, so she swam for them. Nothing could distract her from this purpose.
She started and paused for a wingbeat when she saw that in the little light down on the ground... in the dirt at the bottom of the deep, cold water were bones.
Big bones.
Bones of great-kin with rock-bone-growths on their tails and holes where they once had six eyes.
Bones of great-tusked-kin with sharp tusks longer than their heads.
Bones of very long creatures with no limbs or wings but with mouths big enough to eat kin whole.
How those kin and creatures got there, whether they were killed there in fighting or if they came here to die on their own in peace, she did not know. She did not need to know either.
She resumed her swim into the very big cave-path. The cave-path was big enough for two or three of the great-tusks to swim together. Spikes like teeth and light-rocks grew up from the ground and side of the cave-path. Unlike other waters, these waters flowed slightly.
There was no place to go up for air, which was fine since she had enough good air already inside. Hopefully.
Onward and deeper until the cave-path sloped up and became very dark. She could only see a few lengths ahead because of how dim the light-rocks were. Life-fire sight helped a little since she could see the life-fires of small creatures or fish, but even those life-fires were so small and empty and not like her.
The water and cave-path was dark, cold, and empty of any great life.
Completely alone, possibly further from any kin than she had ever been in her entire life-flight.
So liver-chilling to be alone. But that liver-chill was just another test! It was life testing her strength, her will, and her ability to fly through the dark unknown!
A much brighter light-rock glowed up ahead, revealing the ground: a mix of solid rock with sharp spikes and dirt with long water-plants flowing above. Tiny fish-things dashed in the cold water.
How long had she been swimming? It was unclear. Did this cave even have an end with air? If it did not, she was dead. Had the great-tusked-kin tricked her? It did not feel false in its thought-voice. Were the rock-walls twisting and closing on her?
Did the cave have no end?
She kicked past the light-rock as fast as she could. However, over her right wing and out of the corner of her vision, something moved in the water, as if she was not alone anymore.
So she quickly glanced and saw nothing.
Only her shadow formed onto the wall from the light-rock's light. Her shadow hovered there on the wall, as it should. The shadow started swimming again when she did. Nothing was strange or twisted about that.
She kept swimming, the only thought that mattered being getting out of this cave-path and into the above, which was hopefully worth this dangerous swim.
Maybe this going forth was not such a good idea. A swim which a great-tusk could do might be too much for her. All her good-air inside might become bad-air.
But there was no turning back anymore.
Timeless swimming as the thumping grew stronger inside her head. A constant warning of danger. A hunter swimming after her and which she could not outswim forever. Time was a hunter like any other, only it could only be outrun, not fought.
The last light from a light-rock behind her faded while another light grew ahead. Was that another light-rock? More fish and plants were visible in this dim light.
The cave-path suddenly widened, and she swam out into an open water-range. The ground stretched out into the unknown, dark distance ahead and sloped higher behind her. There were no light-rocks at all.
But there was a dim light high above, maybe from a light-rock higher up. That little light looked appealing, far more than the abyss all around... staring into her with eyes none could see.
Why was she even here: floating alone in this cold water? Completely alone as she had been for so much of her life-flight.
So tired now... maybe this would be a good place to rest, to close her eyes, to fall into a sleep-vision. That would bring comfort.
Only bad-air, if there was any air at all.
Alone if not for the presence... the life-fire floating before her.
It was shaped like her, only a pure dark color. A living shadow of mist and slime and mystery. Had she seen this before? Inside or outside or somewhere else? What was it?
Countless whispers echoing in the silence.
'Stay strong! Do not fail us!'
Fail? What might she fail? Why was she here?
The why was not important.
What was important?
Up was important!
Up was light!
Was up down or was up up?
Swimming up toward the light.
Kicking for the light.
Into the brighter light as the water warmed slightly.
Out of the abyss... staring into her.
No air.
Little strength.
Determination.
Will over body.
Never to give up!
Going up!
So bright!
Nothing would ever break her life-fire!
She crashed through the water and found air!
Deep breaths, gasping for air. Good, cold, clean air filled with life! Air and life in in in and in!
Kicking in the water with her paws, floating in the water as thought returned and became clearer for an instant.
She was alive. That was all that mattered. Everything else could wait until she got more air.
She opened her eyes and looked up, only for her jaw to fall open in awe.
Up at the strange circle-light that burned so bright and so high in the up-there-waters, for what else could that blue color be? There was no visible rock-wall bounding the up-there-waters.
There was a wind in this hidden world too! The wind was more than she ever felt down below in the world she knew.
The water bounced and rolled with a regular whispering sound.
It was too much, too strange and different from all she knew. The swim had been very long and tiring and she needed rest very soon.
There was ground far away: a steep rock which grew out of the water. Thick mounds of ice were on top of the rock and in the water before the rock.
Jumping out of the water and straight into flight was too difficult with how weary and tired she was. So instead she swam there, calmly kicking. The ice in the water was too high to climb up, so she swam on toward the shore which was covered in small boulders and a little sand. The wall of rock rose up many lengths higher than most below-chambers she knew.
The water rolled and crashed in waves against the shore. The waves tried to pull her back out to the water, but the waves were not strong.
Her paws touched the ground.
Weary and weak, unable to think about the strangeness of this range right now, she pulled herself from the water one step at a time. She crawled onto the shore, climbed up onto a flat rock, saw no large life anywhere around her, collapsed on her belly, and curled up to embrace her sleep.
There was time to wonder about this strange range later. Now was the time for rest amid the constant crashing of the waves and the whistle of the wind.
She yawned widely and woke up, only briefly wondering where she was. Then all the memories flew back to her as she jumped to her paws and looked around.
She was in the above!
The amazing above with its high-blue-waters, the great light-rock, the deep snow piles, and the high rock wall behind her. The waters crashed against the shore, roaring and making white foam. None of the waters below were so strong and moving!
And there was life too! White birds perched on rocks or dove into the waters, probably hunting fish.
She was maybe a little hungry, but the wonder and amazement was too much! She could hunt later!
She took a deep breath and roared for joy and her burning liver! Her roar echoed off the cliffs behind her and frightened many of the birds into the sky.
The sky.
What was up there? There were patches of white and grey mist flying high in the sky.
There was only one way to know if these were the flying patches of cloud-mist she had heard of from whispers and stories.
She jumped and flew up! Up into the sky and the warmth from the light-rock so high up. Up and more up!
And the out-there over the waters was so liver-warming and much bigger than all she knew before!
As far as she could see out over the waters, there was a distant line at the limits of vision itself. She could see so much further up here than was possible down below.
The cold wind pushed her wings, slightly fouling her flight, but that was not bad! No, this wind was so much stronger than any she ever felt before! Even if it was cold, her liver was so warm and awed that she did not care about the cold!
Then she was in the white-mist-cloud. Cold, wet, and so different from what was below!
Higher and higher beyond the clouds, she flew up up up! That burning light-rock that was so bright she could not look at it at all.
How could waters fly so high that she could not see the waters at all? What else could the blue be in the sky?
Maybe the bright fire was not a light-rock. There may be no way to know.
She could not fly any higher. That was only a little liver-chilling. The air was cold, empty of push, and limiting, so she dove for the endless expanse of white clouds so like an ocean.
How amazing was this world?
She spun freely while roaring in joy. There was nothing in that moment except the feeling of wonder at how big, different, and amazing this hidden world was.
She dove down through the cloud-ocean and emerged over the water-ocean. The island growing out of the ocean and the large ice patches on it and around it looked so small from so high up. Somewhere down below under the water the cave-path was hidden. Was that the only way back into the ranges she knew? Maybe, but she had no interest in going back there anytime soon.
Her purr of warmth gradually faded as she glided on the winds. A tail-nibbling problem grew until she realized what it was.
Where are the kin?
She could not see any kin anywhere. There should be kin perching on the rocks, swimming to eat fish, or sleeping in shared-warmth. The only life up here so far was the white birds. There had to be more in this limitless range than only birds. Speaking of other life-
Where are the two-legs?
Two-legs: the strange, possibly dangerous life she came up here to find. Where were they? They had to have nests somewhere. How could she find them? There was no way to find them other than pick a direction and fly, hoping that her flight would let her find them, wherever they were nesting.
She looked around into the distance in all directions, searching for anything that could guide her flight. There was an island far off in the distance.
With a roar, she turned for the far distant island and flew with the wind after one final glance at the island she was leaving. That island hid the entrance to the underground-ranges deep under the water. The water-cave was long, but she could swim it even better the next time she was here to return after learning what she needed to know.
It was impossible, but it had happened! The burning light-rock high in the sky was actually flying! It moved across the sky and started to fall lower, making the whole sky change color from blue to orange.
That had never happened before in her life-flight. The light-rocks below did not fade.
This hidden world became even stranger when another light-rock appeared in the sky. But this one was a clear circle, white in color, and burned much softer than the other one.
She shook her head in wonder, perching on the edge of a big drop straight down into crashing waters. The strong wind blew into her face and tickled her wings.
She had already caught enough fish to fill her belly, so there was nothing else she needed to do except rest and observe all she could. There was no better place to do that than right here on the edge of the drop. The island she was on had no other large life on it, so it was safe to sleep on.
Her head on her paws, she lay down and gazed at the darkening sky. Little lights, like very distant light-rocks, appeared in the dark as the high wind changed color. Purple, blue, and green winds began flying high above, like a sky-breath.
There were no words sufficient for that sight which was like nothing below.
Under the strange sky filled with little lights, a calm wind, and a sky-breath, she fell asleep in peace.
These skies were filled with light-cycles in which the bright light-rock flew high and then fell. Yet one more new and different thing about these ranges and skies.
From one island to another she flew, exploring and looking for life. There was never anything except birds or very small life. There were no kin or two-legs. Maybe the two-legs only lived in special ranges?
She knew very little about the two-legs other than what she saw many waking-cycles ago. They were small, had no wings, and probably did not swim well either. They used kin to get around by being carried.
What they ate was unclear, but there was not enough food for them anyway on these empty, desolate islands. There had to be bigger ranges with prey-animals and more.
On an empty island which was nothing except cold and bare rock and snow, under the sky filled with little-lights and the sky-breath, she felt totally and completely alone.
How different would this flight have been if Green and Yellow had been able to come with? They could not make the swim, but if they had, if her friends were here with her on this flight to the hidden world, how much better would this flight be? It would be much warmer, for sure.
Was this even the hidden world now? It was not hidden to her at all. She lived in it now, or at least flew in its skies.
She sighed and whined with liver-chill as the cold wind rolled over her wings.
It was not good to be alone in a life-flight, but maybe she had to be alone. Maybe being alone was a testing of her strength and ability to fly on her own. If others did not want her, as the light wings of Ice-Water-Pack had not, just because she was different, well, maybe they were right to do so.
She had not taken enough time to truly know Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or anyone else in that pack. Red had said something very like that. That she had failed to give her friends enough time and attention was entirely her fault. Even Alpha and Oldest-Knower were not like her in age.
But what about her sire-father and dam-mother? What explained their leaving her? Duty was more important than kin. That was obvious and liver-chilling.
A small fire, a flicking warmth, in her liver sparked to life to remind her that clutching such questions had no lift. Maybe the only answer was to not think about those questions: to turn her life-flight for the future and never look back into the past.
It was not as though the past could ever catch up to her. No, the past was gone and would never trouble her again as long as she stopped thinking about it. Echoes faded after enough time. The echoes of the past would surely fade too.
All that was important now was this flight to find the two-legs and learn what they were. Only then would the whispering and curiosity be satisfied.
This new island was so big that there was no end to its length. The waters crashed against the rocks on the shore-cliff while very high hills covered in trees grew up beyond. Maybe this was not an island but was instead the end of the water-range.
Over the cliffs and above a ground covered in dirt, snow, and trees with thin-teeth-leaves. None of the trees glowed with light, and there were no light-rocks at all, other than the one flying so high above.
Something looked twisted about the ground, so she dove for it and touched down. The grass was withered, and the ground was covered in snow. Many dead or sleeping plants grew in the cover under the trees. It was as though a great cold had flown down into this range, or this whole world she had flown in so far.
Maybe the skies and ranges themselves have hot-cycles and cold-cycles too?
That was a very twisted thought, but the plants probably needed warmth to live in without being asleep and dead-looking.
Then she stood taller and looked around the range for any signs of two-legs. There were none. No two-legs. No other kin. No great life at all.
Where is everything?
Maybe this lacking was the danger: a lack of prey and much life. That was possible. Maybe this was a great-cold time and most life was hiding. That was also possible.
There was still no better flight that to just keep flying and hopefully find something, but what would happen then? What would happen after she found the two-legs? What were their meeting-ceremonies, and how could she speak with them?
The two-legs which went to New-Strength-Pack, from what she heard, were treated like flightmates, but could not understand kin-words.
She could try to touch life-fires with one. By doing that, she could feel the two-leg's life and know what they were like through its memories, if it could share memories with her.
She perched high up on a wind-whipped top of a rock-hill so big that hill was not a good enough word. Hills did not grow up to the lowest-flying clouds, but this one almost did. Though, the below did not have clouds like these at all.
Far down below was a range of more green where grew a long forest of thin-tooth-leaf trees. There were also strange four-leg prey animals with much fur. The blue ocean stretched out as far as she could see in the distance.
But what had claimed her gaze, interest, and curiosity was the very strange destroyed nest. After closely regarding it, she was sure that nothing moved at all down below in the strange nest. She flamed herself, faded, and flew down to inspect it. She landed down amid the strangeness and began slowly walking while inspecting all she could see.
This nest could not have been made by kin. There were very strange piles of downed trees in clearings where there were no living trees except very small ones. The piles of downed trees were burned and broken in many places, but some of them were still standing like false-cave-dens?
Small-thinking life could not have done this. No kin she knew of made cave-dens out of trees.
Two-legs had to have made these things. That was both good and liver-warming, and also a truth to be worried about. Smart and dangerous creatures were a bigger problem than dumb and dangerous creatures.
A wary growl followed as she looked around, seeing no big life there. The two-legs that had been here before were gone, so there was no reason to stay here.
She jumped and turned for the shore, her flight continuing down along the shore just as she had been flying. Going too far away from the way to the underwater cave-path would be a problem. She knew of no other ways back into the world she knew.
But this was progress. She had found an old nest where two-legs had been! This was two-leg territory!
Did they have pack-roles like far-fliers, probably far-walkers for them, young-watchers, hunters, and all the others? There was so much she did not yet know about them.
She crept from tree to tree, hiding in the shadows while also faded from eyes, just to be safe. Her life-organ beat faster and faster while her liver burned warmer and with curiosity.
The two-leg nest just ahead was not empty.
She had seen the nest from afar and had faded from eyes so she could see the nest up close. Her guesses from before were correct. The piled trees made false-cave-dens which the two-legs went in and out of. There were also prey-animals the two-legs were keeping trapped near the false-cave-dens. Beyond that little knowledge, she knew nothing else.
There was more than just this nest. Part of the nest and the false-cave-dens went all the way down to the water where piles of trees were sticking out of the water. More, bigger piles of cave-den-things floated on the water, and she even saw some of those things floating out in the water, two-legs standing on the cave-den-things.
Everything about two-legs was strange.
She walked closer and closer, keeping low to the ground. There was no true need since she was faded, but keeping hidden and being cautious was natural. Two-legs were possibly very dangerous, even though they were much smaller than her.
She finally arrived at the edge of the clearing the nest was in, and that let her see the nest more clearly. A pawful of the two-legs were doing unknown work for their pack. Some were carrying wood, others were play-fighting with sticks, and others were tending to prey-animals. All the two-legs carried on their bodies false-furs, probably taken from prey-animals. Some two-legs were taller and bigger with more face-fur while others were a little shorter, slimmer, and with more head-furs that hung down. Others were young ones based on smaller size.
None of them were anywhere close to her. Some of the males carried big, pointy sticks with them. Why they did that was unclear. Maybe the pointy sticks were like false-claws? Two-legs did not look like they had true claws or big teeth.
They did not look naturally dangerous at all!
None of them had any idea she was there, which was probably good. It was safest to stay here under the trees, with only her shadow here with her.
There was no reason to let monsters close enough to her that they could...
She blinked and grumbled at that twisted whisper. Where had that twisted whisper-thought come from? That was unimportant. It was gone.
Two-legs were not monsters. There was no reason to think that about them. Instead, they were an unknown: possible danger, but possible... what else?
Another type of kin without wings? She did not know. Them being a kind of no-wings-kin, fellow strong-thinking life with life-fires in their livers, would be very good!
Finally having gotten a long look at the two-leg nest up close, she spun away from the nest and ran, dashing away through the woods as the snow crunched underpaw. There were small caves near the big hills, and she wanted time to think about all she knew about the two-legs. Taking that time to think and make a place was better than doing anything as liver-flamed as showing herself openly to the whole two-leg pack.
She lay in her small cave, staring out the cave-mouth. Far away over the green, grey, and white range she could see the ocean and a lone floating-tree-den. Clouds of grey flew high above. Specks of white snow were slowly drifting and gliding on the gentle wind outside the cave. And the great light-rock was falling down beyond the far edge of the hidden world.
Everything about this range was slow and peaceful, now in this cold-time. There was probably a warm-time to balance the cold, but that was a guess.
Very tired with the long flying and sneaking around the two-leg nest, she yawned and adjusted her tailfins over her head. This cave was far enough from the two-leg nest that she would not be found here. The two-legs did not appear to walk much in their territory unless there was a reason.
Next light-cycle would be important. Knowing nothing of two-leg life-ways or proper ceremonies to greet them, the best to do would be stay hidden, completely faded, and learn more about them. She could walk faded in the nest itself, sneaking from tree-cave-den to tree-cave-den and learning more about the ground-kin without any of them knowing she was there.
If she found one that was warm-livered or could be trusted, she could maybe show herself to it!
It was liver-twisting and a little scary to consider truly meeting new life like these two-legs, but that earlier twisted-whispering of fear was false. There was no reason to let fear and distrust force her life-flight. Prudence and caution, on the other paw, had lift.