Mae loosened her tight grasp around Noa's neck as the pair landed safely on the green covered rock face. Mae stood up slowly, looking up in awe to the skyscrapers consumed by nature.
"Eagle nests. We teach them to bond to us when they are grown. To become part of our clan." Noa pointed up to a large nest perched on the edge of the taller cliff face. Mae smiled.
"It is beautiful." She pondered in wonder, being this high upon the cliff, surrounded by even taller trees and lush greenery. Noa observed the Nova, warmth in his chest.
Mae walked ahead along the rock face, her hand brushing against the thick tree trunks. Noa increased his pace, catching up to her easily.
"Stay close to me. You must be careful of any loose rocks or you could fall." Noa said matter of factly.
Mae nodded, hiding a smile.
The pair approached a large tree, its trunk thick and twisted, its limbs full of leaves in every direction, towering even higher than the rock alongside the skyscrapers. The twists in its limbs gave Mae a curious idea.
"I bet I can climb this one." She said triumphant.
Noa rolled his eyes.
Mae approached the tree, gripping onto a high branch and placing her foot on anode. Noa's brow furrowed.
"Mae, you will fall." He said , stepping closer to her. She continued to climb approximately 6 feet from the ground now. She looked down. "Well I've got to get better at it." She said with humour in her tone. Her heart pounded as she took in the height, eagles flying above the canopies. She climbed another foot, resting on a thick trunk.
Noa walked quickly to the base of the tree and looked up.
"That's high enough. Down. Now." Noa said firmly. Mae sighed, debating whether to listen to him or try slightly higher.
Noa predicted her thoughts.
"Mae, if you don't come down now, I will come get you myself." Noa said threateningly.
Mae sighed and began descending the trunks. Noa looked up anxiously, his body tense and ready to act if she fell.
"Careful. Go slow." He said directly.
Mae decreased her pace, making it a foot from the ground. She jumped from the branch landing roughly on the rock next to Noa.
He frowned.
Mae chuckled. "See? I can be just as coordinated as you." She turned andtook a step to the right, moss caused her foot to slip.
Noa grabbed her upper arm quickly, pulling her closer to him and steadying her.
He raised an eyebrow humorously.
"You were saying?"Noa smiled, turning towards the way they came.
Mae climbed on his back and the pair descended the rock face in silence.
They walked in silence, the mission of walking back to Eagle Clan and reuniting. It would be days of walking but they were in good spirits and they had the horse.
They approached the horse. Noa dragged his hands on some small ferns growing under the canopies, lost in thought.
" I always wonder, why some trees grow big and some small. When I was a child, I once found a fern as big as an oak tree. But this one, is small and weak."
Mae turned in curiosity.
"Oh, it's the light." She said matter of factly.
Noa looked confused.
"It's called photosynthesis. The plants use sunlight as energy. In thick Forrest's like this, the smaller ferns do not get as much light and therefore food to grow. So they stay small."
Mae smiled. Noa's eyes widened at this information. He looked in awe of Mae. Nova's were certainly growing on him. The intelligence was strong and fascinating.
"You know so much." Noa said. He climbed effortlessly onto the horse, extending a hand down. Mae grasped it , climbing on behind him."You know a lot too." She said.
Noa smiled to himself. The pair rode for an hour, sunlight warming their faces. The blue blanket sat on Noa's lap as he glanced fondly at it from time to time.
"So you novas were once the alpha? It is hard to believe." Noa said curiously.
Mae frowned.
"Well yes. And we created the virus that created you." She said defiantly.
Noa growled low.
"You and other novas plan to become alphas again?" Noa said curiously.
Mae took her arms from around his waist and instead gripped the saddle edge behind her.
"Yes, if we find enough of us." She said sadly.
Noa frowned, the horse slowing. "And what about apes? You will start another war? Put us in cages?" He said angrily.
"No no of course not. But can apes and my kind coexist peacefully?" Mae said softly.
"That is up to you novas." Noa said gruffly.
Mae sighed heavily. "And up to if apes like proximus decide to kill us or not first."
Noa growled again.
"Not all apes like Proximus. Some are fond of Novas." He said softer. Mae's brow lifted.
"And some novas want to protect apes." Mae said firmly.
Silence filled the air, the sound of the horse feet and wind whipping through the trees filling the tension slowly dissipating.
The horse began huffing as Noa pulled on the reigns tighter. A small rock face acted as a bridge to the raging river below. The horse was anxious. "Steady." Noa directed. Mae gripped tighter round his waist as the horse anxiously glanced at the river. Half way along the crossing, the wind whipped violently.
Suddenly, a tree branch fell head of the trail. The loud snapping caused the horse to suddenly rear.
"Mae!" Noa shouted, gripping onto her as they fell backwards. Mae screamed. The pair landed hard on the rock as the horse sprinted into the distance. Mae watched in horror as the blue blanket blue quickly over the rock face.
"NO!" Noa shouted, sprinting to the rock and climbing down the rock face at. A rapid pace.
"Noa!" Mae knew how much the blanket meant to him. She also knew that he would not be able to get to the base of the cliff and grab it before it floated in the current.
Mae had an idea. She began sprinting to the other side, alongside the river. She watched Noa reach the base of the cliff face, shouting in anger as the blanket drifted just out of his reach. His eyes met hers briefly as she ran alongside the gushing river.
"Mae wait!" Noa scrambled back up the cliff face, heading after her.
She pumped her arms faster, desperately looking for some sort of way to grab the fast flowing blanket.
She gasped as she saw her opportunity. An old dead tree, perched in the river. She felt Noa fast approaching , shouting her name.
Mae scrambled along the thick fallen treee limb, feeling the wet bark slightly bow under her weight. She crawled along it, relief filling her as she approached the end of the branch, perfectly in line with the approaching floating blanket.
" Mae stop!" Noa stood on the branch.
She turned quickly. "no it won't hold your weight!"
He felt the first step break, jumping back onto land.
Mae continued crawling. She sat both legs around a smaller branch, bending backwards and hanging, her hand touching the water. She could hear Noa's shouts of worry, telling her to leave it.
She gripped the blanket as it flowed into her hands, pulling herself up seated onto the trunk in relief.
She began crawling along the trunk, gripping the heavy soaked blanket.
Noa stood with his eyes wide, extending his long arm, ready to reach her.
She wobbled with her crawling, the heavy blanket making it difficult.
She sat with both legs around the trunk to rest.
"Noa, here!" She bunched the heavy blanket into a ball and threw it as hard as she could. Noa caught it easily, quickly throwing it behind him, his eyes immediately back on her.
"Careful! Just little more." He said stepping closer, his fingers eagerly reaching out.
Mae crawled. Her hand slipped as her chest hit the trunk hard.
"Mae!" Noa screamed. She clambered her body weight back onto the trunk, her eyes staring into his relief. She breathed heavy, crawling just a little more.
Suddenly, Noa grabbed her by her underwear arms, lifting her like a small child into his embrace. Mae breathed heavily in fear and relief, burying her face into his warm fur chest. He pulled her back to look at her.
"The blanket, is important." Mae said warmly, glancing at it behind him.
Noa pursed his lips and shook his head.
"Not as important as you." He pulled her close again, in his protective embrace.
"Please, don't scare me like that again. You could have fallen." He rubbed her back with his large hand. Mae smiled.
The sound of a horse whinnying broke their embrace.