An Unpleasant Favor

Balm gasped and backed away from Zenthlay, his features frozen with shock. No, it couldn't be..it was impossible. Unwilling to accept this desperate news, he whipped around, heading in the direction of their warren.

"No Balm! Get back here!" Zenthlay bellowed, but knew she couldn't always protect her brother from the evilness of this world. He would have found out about it soon enough anyways. She just wished that he wouldn't have to suffer through this pain too. She felt that as his sister, she was obliged to shield him from the world. Much to Zenthlay's dislike, things were changing that she could not control.

Balm's sprints slowed to a galloping lop as he neared the ridge of the slope that would allow him to gaze upon the splendor of their long since established warren. It always took his breath away to see the ingenuity of his fellow warren members; some of them had so much talent. A shadow passed across his eyes as they flickered over the scene.

"No.." he whispered hoarsely, frozen in spot. Bodies, strewn across the grass greeted the buck, even some paws and other limbs were lost - separated from their owners. Feeling like he was in a trance, Balm forced his rubbery legs to carry him over to some of the corpses. Some buck, a doe, his marli..

"Noooooo!" Balm yelled out in agony, causing Zenthlay to come running over to him.

"Marli," Zenthlay choked, as she ran a paw over her loving marli's face and closed her eyes. Zenthlay's heart ached as she recited the common lapine phrase, "My heart has joined the thousand, for my marli stopped running today," Zenthlay whispered as she gently put her paw on Balm's shoulder.

The big buck was blubbering like a lummox, as he pulled away from his sister to lie down at his marli's side. He nudged her body softly with his nose. "Marli, I need you, please wake up," he cried. He had never encountered the death of a family member before, and couldn't imagine how much pain it would bring. It felt like someone had savagely ripped his heart out of his chest and ripped it in two, then tossed it on the ground, still vividly beating. His marli, the one who had ensured his survival in the world, was gone. He would never be able to listen to her wonderful stories about Hazel's triumphant journey's or even the courageous Bigwig. Memories flooded through his mind of the doe whose face had crinkled with laughter when he did silly things to please her.

Everything was perfectly quiet until a scratching sound got clearer and clearer. Zenthlay decided to leave Balm with their dead marli, as she did not want him to face any more hardships. He didn't deserve it. She quietly slipped off towards the sound, leaving Balm with his thoughts.

"Frith and Inle please be alive," Zenthlay muttered to herself as she came upon a collapsed run. She launched herself upon the mound of dirt, and began furiously digging. She was fueled by the thought of how horrible it would be to be buried alive. Still breathing, with everything collapsed on top of you. The immense weight, the pitch dark that would cover everything else. Surely, it would be worse than being in Inle. Finally Zenthlay had sifted enough dirt away that a shaking paw shot through the little hole. Zenthlay grabbed the dirty paw and pulled the rabbit out with all of her might. It was a tough squeeze, but she finally did it, and dragged the buck away from the hole to lie in the sunlight.

It groaned and shivered, its eyes glazing over. "Zenthlay." the buck whispered with a smile on his face.

Zenthlay gasped, but remained close to the buck. Damn her for not recognizing him before! But it was kind of hard to recognize him because his coat was not at slick and shiny as it usually was, and he was not bounding around, with ecstatic energy. He had always cheered her up when she was not feeling up to par, and always knew the right thing to say in a tense situation. Zenthlay had never told him before, but she had considered him a possible mate for the future. He was everything that she had been looking for, and now he was well disappearing before her eyes. It was depressing to see a buck who had so much enthusiasm for life, to be dying. Every single thing that Zenthlay had known in her life was being ripped away from her, leaving her with a sick feeling inside. "Quiet," she whispered softly and lovingly to the young buck.

He made a huge effort to smile once more, his mouth twitching with pain.

Zenthlay gently rubbed her pace over the buck's head. "I meant to tell you before now, but I never got around to it. Honey, I love you, and I would be honored if I could be your mate," the doe softly whispered in the buck's ear. Tears soaked her face, as her gaze traveled down to the large gashes that seems to swallow his body, and his mangled limbs that all stuck out at strange angles. Zenthlay knew what had to be done. As much as it pained her to accept this, he had to be put out of his misery. She slowly and gently drew her pace affectionately down his face, and gave him a lick on the cheek. Her paw traveled to his neck, where she quickly dug in her claws.

The buck's eyes bulged as he let out a silent scream. Just as soon as his life had begun, it was over. His body went limp, and his eyes rolled back in his head as he stopped breathing.

Zenthlay collapsed to the ground beside him, whimpering and crying. She never had to claim the life of another rabbit, let alone one that she loved. That was supposed to be the Black Rabbit of Inle's job, not hers. She was merely a young doe, who looked out for the best interests of everyone around her, even if it left her feeling miserable. Zenthlay did not want to go back and face her brother again, but it was necessary. They shouldn't be separated for any length of time, as Balm wasn't the best at making decisions, especially in crisis situations. The doe grudgingly made her way back to Balm, who was still blubbering over the death of their marli. Unbeknownst to him, Zenthlay was not only trying to come to terms with the passing on of their marli, but possibly someone that meant even more to her.

"Let's go Balm, now. We need to get away from this warren. Leave. There are too many.bodies," she choked. "They will attract elil."

Balm wiped away the tears that had formulated on his face, and then wiped his paws on his back. "I suppose," he sighed, feeling like all the strength had been drained from his body.

The two remaining inhabitants of the warren looked back on what used to be their home, and with heavy hearts, began to trudge away from their past.

Suddenly Balm stopped as he looked at Zenthlay, with a look of anxiousness on his face.

"What is it Balm?" the doe asked her brother, her curiosity overcoming her, as she looked on the ground beside them where Balm had his gaze fixated.