-v-

Chapter 36: On the river's edge

Never insult a bellydragger until after you have crossed the river.

~Common fastbiter idiom

The Great Valley:

Datum collapsed in the makeshift nest with a resounding thud. "That could have gone better."

His sibling was not far behind as she finished her climb up into the crevice where the flyer nest resided. She then sat down by the edge of the crevice and stared at the mid-day Bright Circle glumly. "The adults haven't yelled at us like that before."

Flip, for his part, landed in the nest. Unlike the rainbowfaces, this actually was his home. "Yeah… it isn't like we did anything too crazy."

Yaw, one of Flip's siblings, landed soon after. "Is it true? Did you guys actually go to the Smoking Mountain?" she asked.

"I thought you rainbow-beaks were supposed to be smart or something. Why did you let Flip lead you to the angry mountain?" another sibling taunted.

"It wasn't my idea!" Flip protested.

Datum sighed and rolled his eyes. "It was Malka's idea, actually. The Smoking Mountain is an interesting geological feature."

"The swimmer suggested visiting a mountain?" yet another sibling asked, "I get why the swimmer didn't think this through, but what's your excuse?"

Flip crossed his wings in indignation and turned away. The rainbowfaces, meanwhile, shared an embarrassed look.

"Look, it wasn't our best moment. But the rocks we found were fascinating!" Axiom protested.

"Yeah! We found some black ones that must have come from a laval flow. It is just a shame we had to drop them on the way back," Datum added.

"Why did you drop them?" Yaw asked.

That was when a rather large flyer landed at the edge of the crevice, covering all of the children, her own and the guest rainbowfaces, in her imposing shadow.

"That is because they had to run away when the Smoking Mountain decided to begin smoking," the elder female noted with a mixture of bemusement and exasperation. "So what did you three learn today?" she finally asked as she gave her own son and the two rainbowfaces a harsh glare.

Datum couldn't help but gulp. "That the Smoking Mountain is called that for a reason?"

The huge flyer nodded. "Yes. And what else?"

Flip's beak shook as he answered. "That we shouldn't leave the valley without permission?"

This made her stare turn towards him directly. "Well, Flip. It is about the fifth time you mentioned that lesson. I would have hoped it had sunk in by now."

"It'll sink in when a sharptooth's teeth do," Squawk muttered under his breath.

Flip looked down, "Sorry, Mama."

Datum and Axiom agreed immediately, "Sorry, Mrs. Lula."

Lula sighed but seemed to accept the apology. "Well, children, the chosen lesson that Mr. and Mrs. Rainbowface had for you today certainly fits. For in the songs of our kind, the flyers, there are many useful lessons. In fact, most of them are lessons of what not to do. So let's start today with the Song of Refus, the flyer who flew too close to the Bright Circle."

"Oh, I know this one," Yaw said excitedly.

Datum suppressed a sigh as he could deduce the lesson that was going to be conveyed. Well, if this is as bad as our punishment gets then that isn't too bad. Mom and Dad should be back soon, though. Their missions usually do not take this long.

He tried to ignore the ping of concern in his mind. After all, if something had gone wrong then surely the other adults would have told them?

"I am proud of you, nephew."

Cloud glanced up at Pterano from his perch then went back to staring at the ground, features still downcast.

Pterano moved over to the downtrodden flyer and placed a wing around him. "I know that this is not easy, but that is exactly why I wanted you to do this. The only other one who could be believed and pull it off is Brakus, and..."

Cloud rolled his eyes. "And that would've ended in disaster," he finished for his uncle.

Pterano nodded. "Aye. Your brother has heart, but a soft-spoken beak is needed here. I am not trusted… Brakus lacks the finesse needed here… but you are unknown enough to the domeheads and smooth-talking enough to do what needs to be done." The elder flyer then looked at something in the distance as his eyes appeared to cloud slightly. "I suppose between me, you, and Spotter, our family has quite the reputation now."

"Hopefully I'll live long enough to live up to that reputation," Cloud muttered.

"That is what we need to ensure now. I have been talking to the best experts the valley has on the caverns to find the best place for you to share your plan with the conspirators. Thankfully, it sounds like the meeting place we have in mind should allow for escape if things go terribly wrong," Pterano noted.

Cloud perked up for a moment before his face immediately turned skeptical. "Who are those experts?" he asked. The only ones that knew the caverns were my brother and his friends. Well, them and the kids that took them as inspiration.

Pterano hesitated. "Well… after promising that I would not tell the other adults and that I was asking out of curiosity, Datum was willing to tell me how the caverns are laid out."

"Now I know I'm going to die," Cloud declared.

Pterano now rolled his eyes. "Take heart, Cloud! We have a stoutsnout looking at the caverns now. We are not going to leave this up to the valley's resident troublemakers. Though if you have their luck, then you will be in pretty good shape."

"I don't have their luck," Cloud said bluntly.

Pterano shrugged. "Well, the luck you do have seems to have helped you thus far. You have flown messages to every herd on this side of Swimmer Island, you helped us find the flyer traitor, and now you have set up a meeting which could finally end this conspiracy once and for all." Pterano gave his nephew a playful nudge. "And with a reputation like that, you should have plenty of luck with the lady flyers come the next Wet Time…"

"I still have to survive this first," Cloud said, "Do you have any suggestions for assuring that I do?"

Pterano frowned at his nephew's lack of confidence but did not let that deter him from addressing his question. "Confidence is critical with a game such as this. Because it is a game, nephew. A game where lives are on the line and where every word matters. If you speak with confidence and act like you know what you are doing, then even glaring issues with your story will be overlooked. But if you appear uneasy then even the slightest slip up will be seen as a sign of deception."

So act like I believe it, and the ones I'm talking to will believe it. Cloud nodded in understanding.

"Next," Pterano continued, now back to gesturing majestically with his right wing, "You need to understand what your enemy expects and let their expectations play into your web of deceit."

"So they'll think I'm saying more than I actually am. That should be helpful," Cloud said, "They basically fool themselves."

Pterano nodded. "It is all a confidence game. All you need to do is to let them incriminate themselves. As long as some of the herd leaders and their chosen witnesses hear the incriminating words… the Council can do the rest."

"Okay. This now seems at least survivable," Cloud said, "I'm going to need some time to think."

Cloud felt his uncle pat him on the shoulder. "I am confident that you will do fine. I will do everything in my power to make sure that we do our side of the bargain."

Hearing a distant rumbling, Cloud looked up to initially see nothing but treetops. A second look, however, revealed a longneck's head poking up above the trees. It only took a few moments for Cloud to identify the brown head. Alright, looks like Bron is coming back with the news.

Pterano looked up as well and remained silent as the longneck continued on his silent trek. To anyone else watching it would look like the longneck was just on a normal stroll, as he occasionally took a bite of the plentiful vegetation that the valley had to offer. To the flyers' watchful eyes, however, it was obvious that Bron was heading in their general direction.

In the end it wasn't until Bron was right under the tree the flyers were on that he spoke. "It checks out. It looks like there is a cavern that should let all of the sound travel to an entrance. I do not want to know how the children discovered that."

Pterano opened his beak, but then closed it.

"Dare I ask?" Bron deadpanned.

Cloud looked from Bron to his uncle.

"Datum made me promise that I would not tell, but it seems the 'Secret of the Hidden Caverns' was the subject of one of your son's sharptooth songs, which Biter told Datum about in a flyer message."

Bron closed his eyes in exasperation. "Well, that discovery works to our advantage now," he then looked towards Cloud, "The Stoutsnout is ready to show you the cavern, Cloud. How much time do you think you will need to schedule this meeting with the domeheads?"

"Probably a few days, but it's really up to the domeheads," Cloud said, "I wish I could be more specific."

Bron took a bite of the tree so as to keep up appearances, but then he spoke once more. "I wish you the best of luck, Cloud. When you get a firm time let either I or Topps know. We will do our part, but the rest is up to you."

So everything depends on me. Great...

The river's edge:

The azure sky was fast becoming a memory as the Bright Circle descended towards its nightly abode. In its place the sky briefly took on the brilliant shades of the twilight, casting the gently flowing river in its pinkish hue. Against this backdrop and the verdant grass several travellers stood out. The azure sky may have been extinguished, but in its place a blue fastbiter emerged from the tall vegetation as several younger fastbiters followed in his stead. Though several of their number walked with heads held high, this confidence was not universal.

"Where are we going, Deputy Verant?"

Blue's cautious question was covered in as much uncertainty as the small fastbiter's own features, as his back hunched low as if afraid of the answer.

"We're going where we're going," Verant said, "You just focus on making sure we're not ambushed."

The blue fastbiter quickly tightened his grip on his spear before looking back and forth, as if looking for something to impale. "Yes, sir!"

"Alright, everyone. Stay alert," Verant said, "We still have some distance to go."

White Eye obeyed in silence, his mind still buzzing with the events of the day. Much like the leaf which falls into a stream and somehow ends up on the shore, he knew where he was but was still unsure of how he got there. Bloodsnout, no, Resolute, had earned his name… but he was no more. At least, no more in this plane of existence. But yet, he still remained. He was only beginning to come to terms with what that meant.

Reluctantly, he resumed his duty in watching the group's left flank. A duty that, he darkly noted, was Bloodsnout's old position in their hunts. It really wasn't that much different from his previous position except now he was seeing movement only on his right. Otherwise all he could see was the grass in front of him. If any hidden runners were ahead, he doubted he'd see them before he ran into them. He consoled himself with the fact that any would-be ambushers would have almost as much trouble detecting him with there currently being almost no wind to be downwind of.

"Easy, Blue. Remember that Seril is behind you," Verant suddenly interjected.

White Eye noticed the fastbiter to his right jerk nervously as a second fastbiter cautiously approached from behind. Glancing from Blue to Seril and back, he couldn't help but wonder if they were always that nervous. Now he was starting to wish he had gotten to know them better.

"Whoa! Bellydraggers!" Blue exclaimed as he stretched his neck above the grass.

"That means we've arrived," Verant said, coming to a stop and waving for the others to do the same.

White Eye stopped as directed, but Blue's reaction pretty much spoke for them all. As the blue fastbiter looked around at the area with visible confusion. Unless they were going bellydragger watching why were they here?

He thought he was starting to get an answer when he noticed Grimace walking along the edge of the stream. He can't be that stupid, right? There's got to be a reason.

Seril was less introverted in her response. "Um… what is Grimace doing?"

"He's hoping to try to talk with the bellydraggers so we can come to some kind of agreement," Verant said.

Verant was quickly the focus of attention as the five young fastbiters stared at him as if he had grown a second tail.

"Yeah... it's about as crazy as it sounds," Verant admitted, "but Grimace thinks the risk is worth it.

"Talk… with bellydraggers? I mean…. I guess…" Blue shook his head. "But what help could they possibly offer us on land?"

"Seeker wants to find a safe spot across the river, and for that we need the bellydraggers to not attack us while we're looking or while we cross," Verant said, "It's not what we want them to do; it's what we want them not to do."

Blue couldn't help himself. "So he is asking them politely to not eat us?"

"Would you prefer them slowly sneaking up on land, grabbing you by the tail, and dragging you into the water to drown?" Verant asked

White Eye watched as Blue cringed under Verant's glare. "No, sir… but how is he not sure that isn't what these bellydraggers will do to him?"

"He isn't sure," Verant said simply, "That's why he volunteered to do this instead of Seeker.".

A hush fell over the assembled fastbiters at this news.

"Now stay here," Verant ordered, "I am going to talk to Seeker about this. If you hear my alert call, charge in and help your deputy. Got it?"

A chorus of hushed 'Yes, sirs' greeted his retreat as if they were uttered out of instinct. As he slipped through the tall grass the young fastbiters were left to their own thoughts.

"The main pack leader volunteered for this? And Grimace insisted on taking his place?" Seril questioned as he looked at the others, "Do you think Seeker might be, you know, doing this to reward our leader for his screw up?"

"You think the Big Guy works like that?" another fastbiter, Tread, asked, "From what I've heard Seeker is more direct in how he handles things."

"What do you think Grimace was thinking?" White Eye asked, "This whole idea seems crazy."

"Any crazier than sending us out towards a stampede?" Seril asked.

White Eye shrugged. "Even if Grimace isn't thinking right, this isn't his plan. Seeker has to have a good reason for this, right?"

Blue arched his neck so as to get a better view of Grimace as he continued his stroll towards the bellydraggers. "Seeker hasn't led us wrong yet… and if he wanted to do this first then he must have a plan, I guess," he finally offered reluctantly.

"What do you think is going to happen when Grimace gets eaten?" White Eye asked.

"Probably a lot of screaming," Tread muttered, which earned him a fair amount of chuckles.

"I meant to us," White Eye said, "You think we'll get a new leader?"

This made Blue break away from his predatory focus on Grimace's steps. "Would he do that, or would he split us up?" He looked around as if looking for someone. "I hope I don't get Stern Claw…"

"We might just get stuck with Verant," White Eye suggested, "Hopefully not."

"Well, let's not count on our reassignment just yet… here he goes…" Tread noted as he gestured ahead.

"Think he'll make it?" White Eye asked.

Blue shrugged. "It looks like we will find out soon."

Gorach watched the oncoming dinosaur silently as his distinct blur appeared amongst the wavering grass, like an out of place river current or a flash of movement in still water. One did not have to see much to see what they needed. Gorach could deduce whatever his eyes neglected.

The blur stopped.

The bellydragger would have smiled if he were able. The dinosaur was well out of his range and already hesitating. Either this one was overcautious out of ignorance or he assumed that there were other bellydraggers nearby.

It was then that he saw something drop from the dinosaur's hand. Something long, like a stick.

Ah, dropping a sharp stick. I misjudged this one. He is brave and stupid.

Or he already knows that a sharp stick can't pierce your hide, another part of his brain cautioned, If so, then he is smarter than the hidden runner family from earlier.

In any case he was not going to give this dinosaur the satisfaction of him talking first.

"Hello? Can you hear me?" the dinosaur asked, stepping a bit closer.

Gorach opened his mouth suddenly, which caused the fastbiter to leap backwards. He tried not to feel too amused by this reaction.

"My ears listen just as well as your feet can flee," Gorach said simply in a growl that seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere all at once.

"Good to know," the fastbiter said, " I have an offer to make."

The bellydragger did not respond immediately, but rather studied the land-dweller curiously. Seeing that he had no intention it seemed of either running or speaking without a response, Gorach finally answered. "An offer, eh? In exchange to not have legs nibbled on, I take it?"

"More like not nibble on our legs," the fastbiter said, "We would like to be able to safely cross the river and would like you to at least intimidate any hidden runners that get close to the river."

Gorach merely blinked. Maybe this fastbiter was stupider than he had first imagined?

"You plan to cross here? I think the hidden runners will leave you all alone if you plan on drowning yourselves."

"Not here. We would like to follow the edge of the river until we find a better crossing point. And good crossings are somewhat rare."

"Indeed." Gorach agreed, "Their rarity is a benefit to us."

"In this case, you would benefit more by keeping the hidden runners away from us. And, since we control many other parts of the river, there will be more chances for you to benefit," the fastbiter said, "Since I'm sure you'd go after some of them anyways, you'd really be benefiting by doing nothing at all."

Clever. But you are not the only clever one, Land Food. "A promising trade, but how do we know you will keep your part of the bargain?"

"Well, you're just going to have to trust us," the fastbiter said awkwardly, his voice betraying a bit of uncertainty, "We could say the same thing about trusting you."

Too easy. "Never trust a bellydragger with an empty stomach. That is what you land walkers usually say, is it not?" Gorach accused, "Seems like you have a simple way to solve the trust issue."

"And that would be?"

Gorach smiled with his eyes. "Well, a simple food offering would trust both of our trust issues, wouldn't it? After all, before we take sides in this battle of yours we want to make sure you are actually going to win it… and you don't want us hungry when you pack walks in our domain." He edged closer...

"I believe we can handle that," the fastbiter said with a nod.

Grimace had no time to react before the bellydragger had grabbed the dropped spear into his mouth and snapped it like a twig, sending splinters of wood flying into the distance. He paid the spooked fastbiter younglings in the distance no heed as they sent out surprised yelps into the air.

"Excellent. We await your feast," was all Gorach said as he shuffled back in the direction of the water.

The flyer wasn't wrong. It had been a profitable offer, after all.

Littlefoot stared at the proceedings in mute silence, noting the splashes as the bellydraggers once again entered the water. Grimace then slowly turned in his general direction before cocking his tail into a triumphant curl.

"It looks like Grimace got them to agree," the brown fastbiter noted with a slight tail-smile as he let out an approving yelp at his colleague, "What do you make of the bellydragger snapping his stick?"

"Either intimidation or just showing off," Verant said, "Grimace shouldn't have gotten that close."

Littlefoot nodded. "He is rash, but he takes his own risks. I think his group sees that now."

"Let's hope so," Verant muttered. Littlefoot replied with a gesture towards the younger fastbiters, who were rejoining Grimace.

"I will take care of whatever peace offering that the draggers want. Stern Claw had some over-eager ones who are jumping at the chance," Littlefoot affirmed before Verant could argue, "And that includes Stern Claw, so you don't need to assist here."

"So... what am I supposed to do?" Verant asked, giving Littlefoot a confused look.

Littlefoot sighed before giving him a tail-smile. "Take a break. I think we will need it before we deal with what comes next. Besides, a little flyer told me that a certain fastbiter had put him on nest-watching duty. Maybe you can relieve him for a bit?"

"Any idea what my sister is up to this time?" Verant asked.

Littlefoot merely blinked at him. "Trying to mother three hidden runner hatchlings, I do believe. Or, at least, she seems to be the one giving the orders in that area." Tail-smiling again, he added weakly, "Not even a pack leader out-commands a mother over her nest."

"When exactly were you planning on telling me my sister just became a parent?" Verant asked exasperatedly.

Now it was Littlefoot's turn to be on the wrong foot as he squirmed awkwardly. "I thought that you knew... That is why Howler and Loosejaw moved their scouts away from the healer pack. It seems that they hatched sometime today."

"Well, I guess I better go make sure she doesn't eviscerate anyone the way Staza did an egg stealer," Verant said.

Littlefoot opened his mouth to ask what that entailed, but then thought better of it. Instead he gave Verant a slight apologetic bow. "Please ask her if there is any way we can be of assistance. I think… it might be best if you ask that and not me or one of the deputies."

"Probably safer that way," Verant replied. He turned to leave. "Are you sure Grimace will still be here when I get back?"

Littlefoot nodded. "He saved face with his biters, and they know if they attempt anything then they will be target practice for the other groups. As for the bellydraggers…He looked in the direction of the river. "Let's hope they keep their part of the bargain. Time to get the peace offering ready." And with that he began to walk away as well, sending their meeting to an informal end.

And leaving Verant to a mission of a more domestic nature.

Verant carefully moved towards where he remembered Mender had been. Staza had been very protective of the nest area when their kids were hatchings, and he doubted Mender would be much different. It would not be a good idea to startle her

Hearing a flapping sound, he looked up to see a flyer circling overhead. Well, I guess I found the flyer, Verant thought, I guess I'm close now.

"Watch out! She made a line of sticks over there."

Verant nearly startled at hearing Orchid's voice but recovered quickly. "Then what are you doing over here?" he asked.

"Avoiding the line of death," Orchid joked before rising from his position in the grass. "I am here in case she needs more food for the little ones. Cynnil and Buse are checking on the wounded. And Ekaz and Ganda..." He gestured at the grass in the distance. "...are making sure no one accidentally runs in this area."

"Did they volunteer or did their pack volunteer them?" Verant asked.

Orchid preened his feathers for a moment, suddenly looking a bit uneasy. "Um, well, Defiance asked, and they volunteered. I am not sure how nicely he asked."

"Did everyone get told that my sister became a mother except me?" Verant asked frustratedly.

"Verant?" a soft voice suddenly called as a purple head peeked over the grass in the distance.

"Hey, Mender," Verant replied, carefully staying on the far side of the line separating him from the area Mender had declared as hers, "Great job with the sticks."

Her head bobbed below the grass line once more, before peering back. If this were Mender in her younger days Verant would assume it was done out of embarrassment, but the fact that she was peering back at something at ground level confirmed that her focus was on something else entirely.

"You… can come closer," she finally said, keeping her focus on the nest.

Orchid sighed audibly beside him before speaking quietly, "Just go slow."

Verant moved carefully forward, making a point to avoid stepping on any sticks. "So... how long has this been going on?" he asked.

Mender did not move her focus from the little ones, though Verant still could not see anything from his vantage point yet. "They began to hatch after the battle… so I had to make things quickly. Thankfully Cynnil knew what they can eat. Orchid and Buse helped a lot too." She then peered above the grass as if to confirm that Orchid was still out there.

"He's still there," Verant said, noticing where Mender was looking, "Just outside the line."

Mender looked relieved, though whether it was because he was still outside of her territory or due to him being closeby, or both, he could not be sure. It was then that he came to a complete stop as he noticed her tensing up as he moved closer.

"Still getting used to the instincts…" Mender growled in annoyance.

"It'll get better eventually," Verant promised, "Just try to remember that your packmates aren't a threat. It'll make things a lot less embarrassing."

Mender nodded. "Stern Claw told me the same thing."

Verant looked at Mender with concern and a bit of alarm.

"She stayed way over there and yelled it," Mender added with some humor, suddenly a bit more at ease but still with her back towards him. "There is a little clearing over there if you want to circle around…" She then gestured at an area that was the same distance away, but on the other side of the nest.

"If you're sure," Verant said. He started to circle around as Mender indicated but then deliberately took a more straight line path to his destination. Let's see what she does.

Mender did not react at first but then noticeably tensed up. She edged a bit closer to the nest.

"Easy, there, Mender," Verant said once he was opposite his sister, "You've got less to worry from me than anyone except maybe Staza."

She took a deep breath but then edged away from the nest just enough for its contents to become visible. "There they are."

The sight which greeted Verant was as surreal as it was touching. Three little balls of green fuzz slept soundly as they took refuge in a rather large collection of leaves and feathers. Their little chests heaved every second as a testament to their youthful metabolism. A metabolism that would soon send them from hatchlinghood to becoming younglings.

Mender gestured at the one that was closest to Verant with a tail-smirk. "I decided to name him Cover, because he tried to hide under the leaves a lot. He is going to be a sneaker when he grows up."

Verant looked down at the hatchlings, but he initially found it hard to tell which of the hatchlings she meant. A closer look showed that Cover was indeed living up to his name.

Mender nodded at the hatchling that Cover was partially hiding under. "Cynnil helped me with the other two. His sister didn't mind him using her as a place to rest his head, so we are calling her Mitis, which is a hidden runner word for gentle. His brother, on the other claw…"

Verant couldn't help but notice that the hatchling in question kept his head on top of the other two.

"...insists on being no one's head rest. So we decided on calling him Crest."

"I'd keep my eye on that one if I were you," Verant said.

Mender sighed. "I will need to keep an eye on them all. Hidden runners apparently learn how to hide and sneak early on, according to Cynnil and Buse. It is kind of their thing."

"Not so sure about Buse. I can usually find him if I want to," Verant said, "I don't think he likes it when I do that."

"You do realize that is a pride thing for them, right?" Mender asked with a distinct tail-smile, "It is like outrunning a fastrunner. Though usually they only get bested at that once and don't have too long to be upset about it."

Verant heard an audible cough in the distance. "I think Orchid heard that."

This earned him a roll of the eyes. "His ears are surprisingly good," she whispered before speaking slightly louder so that Orchid could hear, "Nahoda is the obvious exception. He got outran and lived to complain about it."

"Someone I should know about?" Verant asked.

"The mate of Orchid's sister. I was helping her with a sprain when I found her love interest. It would have been nice if I had known that before I had chased him down."

Just what have you been doing as a healer, sister? Verant wondered, I would've found your story unbelievable coming from someone else.

It was then that Orchid spoke with a volume that was just loud enough to carry on the wind. "Speaking of hard-to-get food. I did find some more of the seeds. Do you want me to leave them over here or…?"

Mender clinched her jaw and looked down at the hatchlings. "You can bring them by, Orchid. Just walk slowly."

Verant kept a close eye on his sister as she watched Orchid approach. She seemed in control of herself, but he also knew how quickly that could change.

Orchid's hands visibly shook as he stepped into the small clearing and looked at the slumbering hatchlings. He gave the slightest hint of a kind tail-smile before aborting it. He then carefully placed the heaping handful of large seeds on the ground. Then, exchanging a kind nod with Mender, he swiftly made an exit from the nest.

"So what did you feed these guys when they hatched?" Verant asked. He doubted there would have been a lot of seeds nearby.

"I found some sweet bubbles. Well, I had a flyer get some, and they seemed to like them. Buse recommended some seeds, which we gave to them next. I guess they do not eat buzzers until their second Night Circle cycle. Well, except the wiggly buzzers." She then made a disgusted expression. "The buzzers and sweet bubbles were okay to bring back up, but I think Cynnil will be stuck on 'throwing up seeds into hungry beaks' duty as much as possible."

"Couldn't you just pick those up?" Verant asked, confused. It's not like you have to break those first, right?

Mender looked at Verant like he had grown a second head. "The poor things would choke if I did that!" she exclaimed in a whisper before turning back to the three hatchlings, "Everything needs to be broken down until their second Night Circle cycle."

"If you say so," Verant said with a shrug. I can't blame her, but I think she's being extra careful there. My and Staza's kids barely started their second Night Circle cycle before starting to try to steal my food. I'm not sure they ever really stopped.

"Where'd you get the feathers?" Verant asked, looking more closely at the nest. He could make a pretty good guess where Mender had gotten them, but how was another matter.

Mender smiled as she carefully touched some of them. "These were donated by Cynnil…" She touched some green ones and then traced a path to a few purple ones. "Orchid donated these…" And then she gestured at a virtual rainbow of pink, orange, brown, and green feathers, "And you can guess who donated these."

"Yep," Verant said. He took another look and frowned. "A few of these look like someone tried to eat them."

Mender sighed. "I think Taunt volunteered some of Stern Claw's feathers. But the rest… well, it is a nice gesture. I can help be a parent to these little ones, but I don't have feathers sprouting out that I can rip off. Not on me, anyway."

"Probably a good thing, to be honest. You have at least a chance of not being recognized in new places. Seeker's group is much easier to identify," Verant said.

It was then that one of the little bundles of fluff sneezed before curling up into the assorted feathers. Mender noticeably tensed up and looked prepared to inspect the little hidden runner before it resumed its peaceful slumber. Verant dared not move a muscle until the incident was over.

Mender took a deep breath before shaking her head. "I'm acting like Mom did, aren't I?"

"And Staza. And yourself the first time you visited," Verant said, "You're actually doing a bit better than Staza when our kids hatched, actually."

"Well… I am not the only 'mother' in this case. So that helps."

Verant glanced down at the hatchlings. "You might want to try telling them that."

Mender rubbed her neck awkwardly. "Well, um… they saw me first, but they also smelled Cynnil's and Buse's feathers so, um… "

"Not quite the same thing, sis."

Mender gave him a slight tail-smile. "I know. But hopefully they can learn to deal with Aunt Cynnil and Uncles Orchid and Buse in time." Though upon saying their names her shoulders sagged a bit. "Though I will need to stop snapping in their direction. We will have to move soon, right?"

"Assuming Seeker's crazy plan works, yes."

Mender cocked her tail into something approaching a questioning curl. "I am afraid to ask, but what crazy plan is he considering now?"

Verant sighed. She probably won't like it any more than I do. "It's, well... Seeker thinks we should cross the river, so we're more or less collecting a peace offering for the bellydraggers right now," he said in a rush.

Mender tilted her head. "Well, making sure bellydraggers are on good terms with us is a good idea. But why do we need to do that if we are going into the jungle soon?"

"Seeker wants to avoid that, understandably. To do that, he's trying to convince the bellydraggers to let us move along the shallower parts of the river until we can find a good crossing point," Verant explained, "Which we obviously can't do without the bellydraggers agreement unless we want yet another fight."

Verant wasn't quite sure how Mender would take the news. Part of him had assumed she might freak out, or shut down in panic, or look on in confusion. Instead, she merely took a deep breath and looked back at the three sleeping hidden runner hatchlings.

"For saving lives… and doing what the enemy doesn't expect this is a good idea. It is not what I would expect."

That is sort of the idea, though admittedly it being unexpected is because it is crazy, Verant thought.

"But, brother?"

"Yes?" Verant asked hesitantly.

"How exactly am I supposed to carry my kids across the river?" She then turned around with a deadpan glare while gesturing at the hatchlings, "They aren't swimmers."

"If they were older, I'd say have them stay on your back and have someone stay behind you just in case, but..." Verant sighed. "We'll figure something out." I hope.

Mender took a deep breath. "If something isn't figured out, then I will just have to stay put. I am not leaving the little ones behind."

"Let me make sure I understand this. You want me to go tell our leader, the most respected fastbiter in this oversized collection of packs, that you're not going to do something because you don't like his idea?"

Mender did not budge. "Tell Seeker that I like his idea. If it is so crazy that no one else would even think of it, then it might work. But I also want to see his idea for how to move my kids without them drowning."

"This is not going to go over well," Verant warned, "I'll back you up, but are you sure you want to do this?"

"What choice do I have?" Mender asked matter-of-factly, "We need a safe way to move my kids, or they will not be moved. And if you could move Ovie's eggs across the lands, then surely all of you can come up with something."

Chirp!

Verant watched as Mender leaned towards the small pile of seeds and started picking a few up with her mouth. Oh, so she just doesn't like dealing with seeds. Can't say I blame her. Yuck.

Mender moved her neck upwards as the seeds went into her gizzard. "Just ask Seeker how he proposes to move my kids. Or have Cynnil do the talk. I have a few hungry beaks to feed." Then, with a slightly higher pitched voice she looked down at one of the gaping mouths with a smile. "Open wide, little one!"

And with that she let her instincts do the rest as one of the three got fed in the usual manner of hatchlings. Verant, for his part, wisely took this as a proper time to make an exit.

Elsewhere in the Valley:

"Okay, Pound, are you ready for a visitor?"

Pound reluctantly aborted his attempt to rest his eyes upon the call of the healer. Cynnil was the healer, he remembered, but most everything else was still fuzzy. Of course, that was to be expected when your head hit the ground at full speed.

"How are you feeling, Pound?"

"Like a longneck sat on my head," Pound muttered, not quite processing that the question hadn't come from Cynnil.

There was silence for a few moments, as if the voice was uncertain. "That is to be expected. You took quite the hit out there. I am just glad to see you back in the waking world."

Pound forced his eyes open. He wasn't sure who was talking to him, but he was sure it wasn't Cynnil. His apparent visitor wasn't even a hidden runner. The brown coloring gave that away before he could even process what he was seeing. Brown with a red crest... who do I know that has...?

"Cynnil mentioned that you remembered your hatching pack's song. That is good. Mender tells me that is a sign that you should be back to your usual self soon," the other fastbiter said assuringly with a kind expression, "The important thing is to rest and to not rush things."

"Don't worry, sir. I will," Pound replied, finally figuring out that he was talking to Seeker of all people.

Seeker gave him a tail-smile then. "Now I have better let you rest before Cynnil lectures me. Pack leader or not while you are under the care of the healer pack, her words are orders."

It was then that a feminine voice that Pound recognized as Cynnil spoke. "Go ahead and rest your eyes, Pound."

Pound did as he was told and went back to resting.

"If you need anything else, Cynnil, don't hesitate to let us know. Right now we are working on putting something together to help move the injured ones across the river."

"The fact that everyone can walk helps things. But some will need help."

"Yes. That is why we are trying to get some long vines together. If we can connect people together, then that will help make sure that those who can't swim well will have something to hold onto."

That's good. I probably can't swim very well right now, so I'll be needing help, too. Pound thought.

"Sir?"

That sounds like Verant. What's he doing here?

"Verant? How did the meeting with your sister go?"

"Pretty well, I think," Verant replied, "She was a bit tense for a while."

"Um… that is good. After the, um, whole egg situation I decided to not approach the nest."

"That's probably for the best, sir."

"If Orchid was keeping his distance then I figured it was a good idea. All of the scouts have also been alerted to the situation."

Did Mender and Seeker have some kind of argument? And what's with the talk about eggs? Wouldn't the hidden runner healers be dealing with that?

It was then that a feminine voice that Pound recognized as the hidden runner healer interjected, "Well, Orchid is a bit skittish since he witnessed the whole Nahoda thing. Last time I checked Mender was having him help with the food situation."

Nahoda? Who's that? Pound was confused.

"That reminds me. Sir, how exactly are we going to get my sister's kids across the river?" Verant asked, turning back towards Littlefoot.

There was a long pause then. One that even the slumbering Pound could notice.

"Well… you know how we were going to use Path and our allied two-footers to move the healing plants that needed to stay dry?"

There was even a longer pause then. One that was thick enough to cut with a claw.

"Sir?"

"What if… we put their nest up there? I'm sure Cynnil or Orchid can keep watch and take care of them, and it would keep them dry."

"Have fun trying to convince her. I for one want her to still talk to me after this," Verant said.

Littlefoot could only sigh. "As a hatchling I rode on my mother's back. Surely this won't be so bad…"

Pound watched Verant walk off with a knowing chuckle. Um, did I get hurt worse than I thought? Hatchlings riding a two-footer? Fastrunners hunting? Verant not being serious? He rolled over and curled up into the closest approximation of a ball his young adult body could manage. I'm going back to sleep where things make sense.

A swamp:

The hidden runner watched the stream intensely as the enemy scout approached its edge. Even though he was graced with the camouflaged plumage of his kind he could not suppress the rising anxiety within him. After all, lest it would give away his location, he did not hold a spear.

This was not an issue for the advancing scout.

He watched in anticipation as the scout sniffed the water and then slowly trailed his eyes over the scene in front of him. As soon as the scout's eyes turned in his direction, time seemed to stop…

Against every instinct he remained still. Not even his eyes moved. He had to be as unmoving as a bush and as unimportant as a collection of leaves.

...and he was rewarded for his efforts as the scout's eyes continued to trail elsewhere. Then, without any change in expression, the scout turned around and proceeded back on his way.

Wrok was right. Questor is not checking any deeper into his territory. He will be most pleased with this news.

The scout sprinted away as soon as it was safe to do so.

When is Wrok going to get back? Penol wondered, He said he was going to go get everyone for the meeting, but that was... She glanced up at the sky easily visible in the clearing she was in, oh, not that long ago. I guess I'm worrying too much.

It was then that she heard some shuffling of bushes behind her.

"Evening, Miss Penol." came a familiar voice.

"Oh, hi, Greenshade," Penol said, turning around to face the new arrival, "Did you see Wrok on your way here?"

The other female merely shrugged. "I heard him. You know how the Leader is when he wants to be sneaky. I think he is putting us Deputies through our paces."

"Well, at least I'm not by myself anymore," Penol said, "It makes me nervous considering where we are now."

"We have guards stationed around our pack, so we are quite safe, ma'am," came another voice, which Penol could not immediately place until another hidden runner emerged through the grass. His voice was so low that it was barely discernible above the breeze. "But I suspect we will be sent on the move soon."

"I guess so," Penol replied, not sure what else to say. She rarely did when she was around the deputies.

The next two arrivals were not as covert as they could be clearly seen walking back from the stream. Aren't they with the scouts? Shouldn't they be more worried about not being seen?

It was then that she saw a very familiar face appear between the two latecomers. Beneath the dark canopy his expression was unreadable, but the pace of his walk confirmed that something significant was afoot. Wrok was anything but subtle when he was eager to get started.

The remaining two deputies quickly took their seats in the makeshift circle as Wrok advanced on them. Then with a flourish of his hands, he gave Penol a coy look and a wink. "I did my best, Penol, but they were on to me this time. I didn't catch any of them unaware."

"Well, they are with the scouts," Penol replied with a smirk despite her own uneasiness. How is he always acting perfectly calm?

Wrok nodded with a smile. "Yes… having extra pairs of eyes is incredibly helpful in avoiding being sneaked up on… which leads us to this evening." As quickly as his coy demeanor had begun it ended, as he shifted to an authoritative voice, "The fool is only sending out his scouts to the fork of the stream - he is leaving the lower stream completely open for a crossing."

Greenshade nodded. "So we are crossing in the morning then, sir?"

Wrok shook his head. "No. In a situation like this we cannot delay. We will cross tonight."

"Tonight?" Penol blurted out in surprise.

"Sir, our pack is exhausted! A night crossing will be difficult enough without people being half-asleep!" another deputy protested.

Wrok nodded in agreement at this and put up a placative hand. It was in times like this that Penol had to be reminded that Wrok did tolerate disagreement in the inner circle before a decision was made.

"Yes, tonight," Wrok said conclusively, "Questor's scouts are only going this far south because they think we will not have ventured this far yet. If we want to maintain our advantage then we need to cross the stream before Questor does so. Let him either face the fastbiters alone, or cross the stream with our pack at the ready…"

Greenshade looked at her leader with a ponderous expression. "So even if we are tired, we would have enough notice of a crossing from the other side to mobilize, and at an advantage."

Wrok nodded. "Exactly. We can let the pack nap tomorrow besides some scouts. I was hoping for this. This is why your scouts were on leave today, Greenshade."

"Wouldn't it be easier to cross if everyone was fully rested?" Penol asked.

"It would," another deputy agreed, "But I suspect our Leader wants us to be in a place where we are not expected, to prevent a surprise attack."

"Exactly," Wrok affirmed, "And having our pack sleep in the daylight tomorrow would also put our sleeping time into a more suitable… predatory arrangement. We need to be most rested when surprise attacks are most likely."

He then shifted his focus to Penol. "I will admit that I am a bit concerned about our young ones. We might need to help the mothers by enlisting some spare backs to carry the young across the waters. We need this advantage, but we also need to avoid tragedy."

"I can help with that," Penol said, "It shouldn't take too long to actually cross, right?"

This made all of the deputies turn towards her. Wrok, in turn, smiled. "It should not. What do you have in mind, Penol?"

"Maybe we can let the families have a half a night of sleep," Penol suggested, "That way they can still cross tonight but still get some rest."

Silence greeted her proposal. I just embarrassed myself again, didn't I? Penol thought.

"Actually, that is a fine idea," Wrok agreed, "We move a forward party across immediately. Then the rest of the pack can follow before dusk. We would still keep our advantage from the night crossing, but we would be at better readiness."

He nodded approvingly and gave her a smile. "Any objections to Penol's suggestion?"

This time the silence that followed had a very different feel.

Greenshade gave Penol a nod before addressing Wrok. "Should I ready my scouts for the immediate crossing, sir?"

Wrok nodded. "Yes, that would be good. Try to establish a solidly defended crossing point for us and we will be over before the morning." He then looked at his other deputies. "I will leave the announcement of the late night crossing to both of you. Tell everyone to get some sleep for now."

"Yes, sir," came the synchronized answers. It was not missed by Penol that they both appeared relieved. Was that because of my proposal?

Wrok smiled. "Well, then. I guess that is it. We will await Fate's judgement before the night is over. Meeting adjourned."

Penol watched the others depart, some more quickly than others. Just as she was about to leave as well, she noticed Wrok himself hadn't moved.

He smiled at her before walking over. "You saved our pack a lot of trouble there. I was too focused on the objective and the danger of waiting until daylight that I missed an obvious compromise."

"I thought the objective was to keep everyone safe?" Penol replied uncertainly.

Wrok nodded. "It is. But in the long-term the pack will be safer across the stream even if the crossing is a risk. But I was too focused on that goal that I didn't see a safer choice." He studied her for a moment. "My position does not allow for much compromise… but you are quite skilled at it."

"Really?" Penol asked, "I'm just focusing on what I think is important. I've just gotten lucky lately, that's all."

"No, I don't think so," Wrok retorted as he leaned in closer, "What I see in you and what I am sure Ignis saw in you is coming to light. You are good at seeing the goal and finding the best path to that goal."

Wrok sighed. "I tend to choose the most direct path. But the direct path is not always the best one."

"Well, that path got you here, didn't it?" Penol asked, looking away in embarrassment.

Wrok snorted. "It did. It did… and that is why Questor will expect us to take the conventional path across, or to face him directly. He will not expect this until it is too late."

Wrok then gestured to a place some distance from the stream. "Let's get some rest. I think it is going to be one long morning."

"It's going to be a weird one, going back to sleep when the Bright Circle is up," Penol replied.

Wrok nodded as he lay down in the brush. Before he closed his eyes, however, he offered Fate the closest thing to a wish he could muster "When the Bright Circle returns may it see us in a better position."

The other side of the stream:

"Whose bright idea was it to cut across the stream? Now we are hopelessly lost!"

A nearby scout simply glared at Bluntbeak, silently answering his question.

"Well…" Bluntbeak sputtered while gesturing at the thick green foliage all around them, "We had to do something! The enemy was on to us!"

"They were on to you, not us," the scout corrected.

"Well, they are on to us now, so cut the chatter, you two!" the other scout hissed.

This finally quieted the hidden runners as the second scout carefully peaked over the bushes to see any sign of advancing threats. This left Bluntbeak with a few moments to his thoughts. Though he only needed one to summarize his day. This is a nightmare. I would rather relay a message to Ignis and risk being stabbed than run another message to a scouting party. This is way too close!

"I think we've finally lost them," the first scout said, "Let's not do that again."

Bluntbeak allowed himself a sigh. "Alright. I may outrank you two, but you were always the better scout, Narfa. Let's try it your way now. What do you recommend?"

"Finding the path back to where we crossed the stream might be the quickest way back. Or at least the quietest," Narfa replied.

Bluntbeak nodded, but then seeing that Narfa still was hesitating, he closed his eyes in exasperation. I was giving you command, you tail-chaser.

"Alright, lead the way." Bluntbeak finally said before gesturing at his counterpart.

Narfa turned and started moving through the bushes slowly and carefully. There was no guarantee that Bluntbeak's pursuers wouldn't double back.

Bluntbeak followed, carefully avoiding stepping on the numerous sticks and detritus that littered the jungle floor. All the while, he eyed the ferns and vines that surrounded them. Any one of them could hide a potential assassin, a desperate hunter, or even a bellydragger waiting in ambush. In the jungle the dense covering was both one's salvation, and one's potential downfall.

Narfa suddenly signalled for the group to stop. Holding very still, he took a long moment to watch and listen. When nothing else indicated movement ahead, he signaled for the group to move again. It might very well have been nothing, but it paid to be cautious…

Bluntbeak resumed his cautious forward movement. The movement of water was now audible once more as they approached where they had crossed the stream. It provided a steady background noise which washed out the occasional squawks of the jungle gliders and the scurrying of unseen ground fuzzies. Nonetheless, there were no obvious signs of obstruction in the foliage around them, and nothing that indicated a stalking presence.

Bluntbeak nodded to his counterpart and took a position on Narfa's right flank while the other did the same on the left. They each could watch their respective sides.

The hidden runner moved a bit faster now, keeping pace with his makeshift troupe. The odd return to his old profession was strangely comforting, despite the fact that he was now in the most horrific situation imaginable: stuck in enemy territory with no obvious way out. For once he could pretend to be a scout again and not the mouthpiece of the future Great Leader himself. He kept this insight to himself, however, as he studied the terrain around him. Nothing seemed out of place.

That was when his foot hit something soft.

Using speed he did not realize he possessed, Bluntbeak put all of his weight on his other foot and sent himself airborne, raising his spear at the ready to strike at the unseen threat. The others, reacting to his sudden movements, did the same. Very soon there were three sets of spears all focused at the same patch of ground.

But no one struck. Instead they stared at the newcomer in mute silence. A newcomer with a distinct rainbowed beak.

Grim-faced, she blinked once, before narrowing her eyes. In them shined a fire that wreaked of desperation. Her voice, when it came, had a coarseness that made all three of them flinch.

"If you are with Questor, then strike me down now. I am done running. If you are with anyone else, then help me up."

Bluntbeak could not help but stare in disbelief. She had been running from Questor's pack? And if she had been hiding so well that they literally had to step on her, then that must mean…

He lowered the spear. "There are two of you… you are the valley's Left Claws," he muttered in a stupified manner, as if saying the words made them more true, "Where is the other one?"

The scouts looked at Logos then started looking around cautiously for a second rainbowface.

Logos looked away and as she did so her eyes gave away despair. "Questor has my mate."

The hidden runner's blood ran cold with this news. With the stories about those two… if Questor is able to make the other one talk, then we are doomed.

Bluntbeak grabbed the rainbowface's hand.

"Then we have no time to waste. We must get you out of here immediately."

"And how are we supposed to do that safely?" Narfa asked.

Bluntbeak frowned. "We don't. We will have to do this quickly and report back before all is lost. And that means running along the stream's edge. We at least know where that leads."

The scouts gave each other a concerned look but then nodded their ascent. "Just remember, if we die, this was your idea," Narfa told Bluntbeak.

Bluntbeak looked over at the rainbowface and gave a reassuring nod. "Alright, let's move."

Thank you very much for the reviews, everyone! Our apologies for the long delay in getting out the latest chapter, but we hope that you enjoy!

Anagnos:There is no need to apologize for the delay in reviewing the last chapter. This is especially true after our recurring delays in posting chapters. Historian and I are just glad to see that people are still reading and enjoying this story. :) We are certainly seeing numerous characters be pushed into uncomfortable directions with the growing struggle, with Cloud now moving into the realm of espionage, Castor moving into the role of atoner and double-agent, and White Eye reconsidering the costs that the battle has exacted upon him. All the while we see that everyone is dong what they think is right, but in the murkiness of this conflict their certainties are fading.

gordhanx: Thank you for the detailed review, as always. I am also glad to hear that you enjoyed the little bonus chapter as well. :) It was a fun and touching moment that we wanted to capture, even though it did not fit into the main narrative. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on the latest installment. :)