The Cathach
Chapter 12
Sorry peeps! Missie won't be updating any time soon. My brother broke the computer again and I'm uploading this from a friend's. I'll work on everything when the computer is fixed or I get a laptop. Whichever comes first. Usual warnings, usual disclaimer, here's part 12.
***********************
/ Are you okay, Duo?/
" Um, yeah, just peachy."
Aside from the fact that he felt ready to throw up into the forest canopy below them. If he could get over his travel sickness, he might even enjoy the ride. The lush green canopy receded and waved with the wind, a sea of pulsating emerald green. To the right, a seemingly endless stretch of soft white sand loomed underneath.
/ Do you see a trail?/
The violet-eyed soldier scanned both stretches of wilderness, and uncovered a small, beaten path, hidden in the trees in the thick of the forest.
" There's a trail through the forest. Crap, more green. I'm so sick of all this stinking greenery. Ah, well, turn around so we can tell the others."
The Alicorn spun sharply to fly in the opposite direction, and Duo nearly lost his lunch.
***********************
The griffon's matted brown-feathered wings sent clouds of dust floating into the fresh air. For a moment, it flapped about awkwardly before it gained momentum. The others clumsily attempted to get airborne. They hadn't needed to fly for a long time, Une had awakened them from a lengthy hibernation. The promise of fresh game had been too tempting for them to ignore. They could smell the blood of an immortal about three miles away.
Finally, they seemed to grasp the nuances of flight and the twelve enormous beasts formed jagged brown streaks across the perfect azure sky.
***********************
About half a mile away, Duo spotted the rendezvous point and the three Fenians waiting for them. He was glad to be closer to the ground.
" Start bringing her down, Quatre. We're almost there."
As the Alicorn began to descend, a streak of rusty brown caught the faerie's attention. He tried to focus his eyes to get a better look. A vulture, with a rusted iron beak and the body of a wolf, seemed to grin at him with its crimson eyes. Duo grinned back and prepared for battle. It didn't look like anything he and Quatre couldn't handle.
The braided soldier clung to Quatre's neck when the animal took off vertically into the clouds and spun wildly in the direction they had come from. An inhuman shriek from behind them prompted him to look behind him. The vulture-like creature was gaining on them, even though Quatre was flying so fast that Duo's braid had come undone.
" Woah, Q, what's the panic? Let me get a decent shot at him!"
/ That's a griffon, Duo! They're immune to ancient magic! /
Wrinkling his nose in disbelief, Duo shouted a fast incantation and hurled a jagged bolt of lightning at the beast. Another banshee-like wail came from the iron mouth, and the bolt shattered like glass. Duo started panicking.
" Shit! Fly faster, Quatre!"
Quatre's huge silver-white wings lashed powerfully at the air until finally it seemed as though they had outmanoeuvred it. Just as both immortals were about to release a sigh of relief, two more of the griffons appeared in front of them. The one that they thought they had escaped caught up with another three. Two more closed in from either side. With no other option, Quatre flew up through the clouds, narrowly missing electric storms and the oxygen around them was growing thinner. Finally, Quatre came to a halt and hovered miles above the ground.
The Alicorns sides heaved with the terrible effort of breathing such thin air after so much physical exertion and Duo scouted the clouds for signs of the beasts. When he saw that it was safe, the violet-eyed Fenian flopped onto Quatre's neck.
" Phew! Jeez, if you see my nervous system lying around here somewhere, I'd like it back. But at least I didn't shit myself. That'd be bad news for you, right, Q?"
Quatre was too tired to answer him. After he had gained his breath, the animal prepared to fly back to the rendezvous. Suddenly, rusty metal claws tore through Quatre's left wing, stopping an inch away from Duo's face. Cursing, Duo cut off the limb with his dagger and pulled it out, along with a string of matted, bloody feathers. Quatre attempted to fly on the injured wing, but all twelve griffons were fast catching up with him.
Duo had closed his eyes and was awaiting the inevitable when he felt himself being thrown around on Quatre's back. The Alicorn was trying to throw him off! One forceful thrash loosened the braided soldier's grip on Quatre's neck, and he felt himself falling into the forest canopy. While plummeting, he saw one of the griffons slash cruelly at the Alicorn's face, and he watched as his friend fell with a crash onto the wasteland.
From the safe covering of the trees, Duo held his breath while the griffons tried to sniff him out. He'd severely injured his head in the fall, but needed to stay conscious to avoid he demons and help Quatre. The griffons soon gave up looking for him and turned their full attention to the motionless Alicorn. After they cawed indecisively at each other for a few moments, the largest griffon picked up the injured animal like a broken rag doll and flew off in the direction of Tara.
Duo watched with a burning sensation in the pit of his stomach, and a lump in his throat. Then darkness flooded his senses.
***********************
Heero felt that unfamiliar feeling of panic again as the soldiers searched the area for the two immortals. They had heard the inhuman cries from the rendezvous point and automatically assumed that they had been attacked by demons.
The worried feeling that surfaced in Heero was uncomfortable, because it was the one thing he couldn't understand. Was he worried for the integrity of the team if he lost the immortal? No, that wasn't it. He would have carried on regardless of losing a member.
He glanced over momentarily at Trowa and Wufei. The Asian looked no different than usual, but Trowa's face was pale and his eyes reflected fear. Heero had always considered the auburn-haired soldier his most dependable ally. But his true unpredictability showed when he fell in love with Quatre. His whole personality had undergone a rapid change that Heero scorned, but secretly envied. A pained moan jolted the Fenian out of his self-reflection.
Underneath the bushes, Duo was sprawled on his back. His long, honey-colored hair streamed out like a blanket underneath him, and his angelic face was relaxed. Heero would have stood back and admired him, but his leadership qualities kicked in and told him to pay attention to Duo's serious head injuries.
"I've found Duo!"
"But where's Quatre?"
Heero noticed Trowa standing at the edge of the forest, in the wasteland. After loading Duo's body onto Wing, he walked over to Trowa to see what he was looking at.
A deep pool of blood, soaking into the sand, surrounded by matted silver-white feathers.
Chapter 12
Sorry peeps! Missie won't be updating any time soon. My brother broke the computer again and I'm uploading this from a friend's. I'll work on everything when the computer is fixed or I get a laptop. Whichever comes first. Usual warnings, usual disclaimer, here's part 12.
***********************
/ Are you okay, Duo?/
" Um, yeah, just peachy."
Aside from the fact that he felt ready to throw up into the forest canopy below them. If he could get over his travel sickness, he might even enjoy the ride. The lush green canopy receded and waved with the wind, a sea of pulsating emerald green. To the right, a seemingly endless stretch of soft white sand loomed underneath.
/ Do you see a trail?/
The violet-eyed soldier scanned both stretches of wilderness, and uncovered a small, beaten path, hidden in the trees in the thick of the forest.
" There's a trail through the forest. Crap, more green. I'm so sick of all this stinking greenery. Ah, well, turn around so we can tell the others."
The Alicorn spun sharply to fly in the opposite direction, and Duo nearly lost his lunch.
***********************
The griffon's matted brown-feathered wings sent clouds of dust floating into the fresh air. For a moment, it flapped about awkwardly before it gained momentum. The others clumsily attempted to get airborne. They hadn't needed to fly for a long time, Une had awakened them from a lengthy hibernation. The promise of fresh game had been too tempting for them to ignore. They could smell the blood of an immortal about three miles away.
Finally, they seemed to grasp the nuances of flight and the twelve enormous beasts formed jagged brown streaks across the perfect azure sky.
***********************
About half a mile away, Duo spotted the rendezvous point and the three Fenians waiting for them. He was glad to be closer to the ground.
" Start bringing her down, Quatre. We're almost there."
As the Alicorn began to descend, a streak of rusty brown caught the faerie's attention. He tried to focus his eyes to get a better look. A vulture, with a rusted iron beak and the body of a wolf, seemed to grin at him with its crimson eyes. Duo grinned back and prepared for battle. It didn't look like anything he and Quatre couldn't handle.
The braided soldier clung to Quatre's neck when the animal took off vertically into the clouds and spun wildly in the direction they had come from. An inhuman shriek from behind them prompted him to look behind him. The vulture-like creature was gaining on them, even though Quatre was flying so fast that Duo's braid had come undone.
" Woah, Q, what's the panic? Let me get a decent shot at him!"
/ That's a griffon, Duo! They're immune to ancient magic! /
Wrinkling his nose in disbelief, Duo shouted a fast incantation and hurled a jagged bolt of lightning at the beast. Another banshee-like wail came from the iron mouth, and the bolt shattered like glass. Duo started panicking.
" Shit! Fly faster, Quatre!"
Quatre's huge silver-white wings lashed powerfully at the air until finally it seemed as though they had outmanoeuvred it. Just as both immortals were about to release a sigh of relief, two more of the griffons appeared in front of them. The one that they thought they had escaped caught up with another three. Two more closed in from either side. With no other option, Quatre flew up through the clouds, narrowly missing electric storms and the oxygen around them was growing thinner. Finally, Quatre came to a halt and hovered miles above the ground.
The Alicorns sides heaved with the terrible effort of breathing such thin air after so much physical exertion and Duo scouted the clouds for signs of the beasts. When he saw that it was safe, the violet-eyed Fenian flopped onto Quatre's neck.
" Phew! Jeez, if you see my nervous system lying around here somewhere, I'd like it back. But at least I didn't shit myself. That'd be bad news for you, right, Q?"
Quatre was too tired to answer him. After he had gained his breath, the animal prepared to fly back to the rendezvous. Suddenly, rusty metal claws tore through Quatre's left wing, stopping an inch away from Duo's face. Cursing, Duo cut off the limb with his dagger and pulled it out, along with a string of matted, bloody feathers. Quatre attempted to fly on the injured wing, but all twelve griffons were fast catching up with him.
Duo had closed his eyes and was awaiting the inevitable when he felt himself being thrown around on Quatre's back. The Alicorn was trying to throw him off! One forceful thrash loosened the braided soldier's grip on Quatre's neck, and he felt himself falling into the forest canopy. While plummeting, he saw one of the griffons slash cruelly at the Alicorn's face, and he watched as his friend fell with a crash onto the wasteland.
From the safe covering of the trees, Duo held his breath while the griffons tried to sniff him out. He'd severely injured his head in the fall, but needed to stay conscious to avoid he demons and help Quatre. The griffons soon gave up looking for him and turned their full attention to the motionless Alicorn. After they cawed indecisively at each other for a few moments, the largest griffon picked up the injured animal like a broken rag doll and flew off in the direction of Tara.
Duo watched with a burning sensation in the pit of his stomach, and a lump in his throat. Then darkness flooded his senses.
***********************
Heero felt that unfamiliar feeling of panic again as the soldiers searched the area for the two immortals. They had heard the inhuman cries from the rendezvous point and automatically assumed that they had been attacked by demons.
The worried feeling that surfaced in Heero was uncomfortable, because it was the one thing he couldn't understand. Was he worried for the integrity of the team if he lost the immortal? No, that wasn't it. He would have carried on regardless of losing a member.
He glanced over momentarily at Trowa and Wufei. The Asian looked no different than usual, but Trowa's face was pale and his eyes reflected fear. Heero had always considered the auburn-haired soldier his most dependable ally. But his true unpredictability showed when he fell in love with Quatre. His whole personality had undergone a rapid change that Heero scorned, but secretly envied. A pained moan jolted the Fenian out of his self-reflection.
Underneath the bushes, Duo was sprawled on his back. His long, honey-colored hair streamed out like a blanket underneath him, and his angelic face was relaxed. Heero would have stood back and admired him, but his leadership qualities kicked in and told him to pay attention to Duo's serious head injuries.
"I've found Duo!"
"But where's Quatre?"
Heero noticed Trowa standing at the edge of the forest, in the wasteland. After loading Duo's body onto Wing, he walked over to Trowa to see what he was looking at.
A deep pool of blood, soaking into the sand, surrounded by matted silver-white feathers.
