A/N: WARNING: Violence

I'm back! I'm so sorry it took so long for me to return but I hope this makes up for it! I'm all moved and mostly settled in. It's going to be a bit before I start a new job so there may be another shake up then but hopefully it's not too bad.

I really hope you enjoy this chapter! Let me know what you think in the comments and reviews! I read them all and they are truly appreciated!

A Digital Mother

Chapter 17

3032

Sona

"Korg!" Sona shouted into her focus, jogging along at the front of her host. "Brun! Report!"

"Korg here!" The gruff voice shouted. "We've arrived at the meeting point. Brun's forces are right behind us. Our scouts can see them from the ridge."

"Less than half an hour till we rendezvous, War-Chief!" Brun added.

"Send out your best hunters and trackers, Korg!" Sona barked. "I have an idea." Sona kept up her brisk marching pace as she explained her plan to the two captains. It'd only been an hour or so since word came from Rost that the enemy had begun their assault and there was no way she'd make it in time to be of any assistance unless they were able to hold out better than expected.

Her force, consisting of the two-hundred reserves she'd pulled from the walls of the Embrace hadn't even made it to Mother's Rise where another force was waiting to join them. It was far better for their closer garrisons, Mother's Crown and Mother's Tears, to head immediately for Mother's Vigil and join the battle. Even with just their forces, they stood a chance at matching the size of the Carja army. What's more, they could catch them off guard by attacking the rear of the enemy siege camp.

As for the forces at Mother's Song, they would head for Mother's Crown as quickly as possible and then wait there for Sona to arrive with Tosa, the captain of Mother's Rise and their combined forces. Then the three garrisons would march for Mother's Vigil together. Unfortunately, even at their all but breakneck pace, Sona was unlikely to reach the besieged village for nearly two days. Thankfully, Korg and Brun could have their forces there in just under a full day.

She'd been enjoying her time off with her children when the call came in from Yore. They were just finishing up their hunting trip beyond the Embrace when the emergency broadcast began. Sona had listened to Yore's pained declarations with growing dread and rage. When the last words the brave captain would ever say to her people were silenced, a change occurred within her.

The loving, if strict mother she'd been for the previous few days was gone. Replaced in full by the serious, dangerous, and wrathful War-Chief. Her children, used to her strict but not unkind orders, were quite startled by the sudden change that came over her. She would have to apologize to them both if she survived this. Vala especially had seemed a little afraid of her, but then she was still rather young. Varl, her elder child, had seen her 'War-Chief' persona more frequently as he neared the age where he could run in the Proving.

Sona grit her teeth and let the mother in her fade into the background once again. Now was not the time to feel sentiment or regret about her children. Her wider family needed her. She was the War-Chief of the Nora. As the Matriarchs were the grandmothers, wise and elder guides of the tribe, the War-Chief was the mother. Or father, depending on who held the post. The children of her blood and heart were safe within the walls of her home. The children of her duty were the ones in danger now and she refused to let them down.

Karst

"The Kestrel is wounded, but definitely alive." Karst reported into his Focus with a hushed and hurried voice. "I could hear him barking orders but haven't been able to get a look at him to see the extent of his injuries." He was in the temporary abode they'd been lent by the guards of Daytower while Sokana kept watch outside. Ostensibly, 'Moli' was chatting up Hawil and the other guards who'd just come off their shift while her brother 'Merav' was in their room going over his books and recording their recent transactions with Lykhal in his ledgers. "So far as we can determine, the Carja have no idea that our wider forces are aware of the invasion. They seem to believe that they were successful in preventing any survivors from escaping to warn the rest of the tribe."

"Good." War-Chief Sona responded. She, along with all the other captains save for Rost were in a conference call with him. Rost was far too busy defending the walls of Mother's Vigil and would be informed of his report the next time the captain was able to make a call. "You are to remain within the fortress for as long as is reasonable and safe. Do not blow your cover but gather as much intel as you can. It's a blessing from the All-Mother than Yore was able to put the butcher out of commission, but we need to know if he recovers enough to join the battle."

"It will be done, War-Chief." Karst replied before signing off. Standing up, he stretched and looked around the room. It was your standard Carja bedchamber, really. A bit more barren than would be typical but that's to be expected of a guest room in a military installation. Two beds were pushed against the walls while a round carpet covered the center of the stone floor. Moving to the door, he listened for the chatter Sokana was using to disguise any noise he might make inside their rooms while he made his report.

"Rammahal!" 'Moli' exclaimed happily. They'd been through the fortress enough times that the two of them had become rather well acquainted with the regular members of the garrison. "Congratulations! Nasahed just told me you're getting married! Tell me everything!"

Karst opened the door and spotted the Carja guard in question entering the courtyard from the opposite direction, grinning sheepishly and rubbing the back of his head. Their guest room opened directly onto the central courtyard of Daytower, making it easy to eavesdrop on conversations in the yard or have someone else eavesdrop on you. That is, if you didn't have a brilliant cousin posing as your gossipy sister making a huge racket just outside the door.

"Well, don't keep me waiting!" 'Moli' exclaimed. "What's she like?" Karst stopped listening and moved to sit near the fire next to Lykhal.

"Ah, Merav!" The slightly overweight merchant exclaimed. The sun had only just begun to descend, so most of the fort was gathering for their evening meal either in the courtyard or in the open-air mess hall. "Come, sit. That sister of yours has been talking the ears off half the guard for over an hour now."

"What can I say?" 'Merav' answered. "She loves her gossip and frankly, doesn't care what kind it is. She's just as likely to spend an hour talking about someone's relationship problems as she is the finer details of a vineyard scandal, the queen's newest fashion choices, or the progress of the war."

It was honestly quite ingenious if he thought about it. If one cultivated a reputation as a gossip, especially one interested in every juicy story they could get their hands on, then nobody would blink twice when she asked about the details of the war. Of course, this led to the danger of exaggerated information or even outright lies as the men she spoke to tried to impress the pretty young woman asking them questions. These dangers were mitigated somewhat by the near-completely factual and entirely reasonable tactical information Karst was able to gain through his merchant contacts.

Nobody would care to wonder why 'Merav' needed to know about troop movements in the northern and eastern theatres of the war. It was obvious, wasn't it? He was a merchant selling food and supplies to soldiers. The only way he could do that was if he knew where the soldiers were. Through their combined efforts, the two Seekers were easily able to ferret out a wealth of information with a miniscule margin of error.

"Tell me, Merav." Lykhal spoke up, breaking his train of thought. "Have you heard much of the war in the west?" The Carja were at war with literally all of their neighbors. The Nora in the east, the Banuk and Oseram in the north, and finally the semi-united Utaru and Tenakth in the west.

"Not much, I'm afraid." 'Merav' shrugged. "I don't usually get much further west then Holy Meridian. "Why? Has something happened?"

"My uncle recently led a caravan out there to resupply Barren Light." Lykhal said, leaning in. "His last letter indicated that things on the western front are going much better than they are here on the east. The Utaru are all but scattered. Barely hanging onto their capital village though the Tenakth are putting up much more of a fight. Mostly staging hit and run attacks on our convoys rather than facing a full-scale battle but they're quite the nuisance if my uncle is to be believed. Compared to that, our forces here have been stalled for quite some time. It makes me wonder just how the eastern savages are doing it."

"Well," 'Merav' rubbed his chin in thought. "The Nora tribe is supposedly quite stubborn. The war is proof of that at least. Don't forget, they've pushed back an invasion once before, during the reign of the eighth Sun King. They don't stand a chance this time, but it's not really surprising that they would put up a strong resistance."

"Hm. True enough. The mountain barriers don't make things any easier on us either." Lykhal nodded in agreement.

Karst and Sokana ate and talked with their enemy, wheedling as much information as possible out of them for nearly two hours as the sun began to make its slow descent to the horizon. It was only after the object worshiped by the Carja had just begun to sink below the dark line, turning the sky a vibrant red, that they returned to their lodging. Slipping his Focus on, Karst prepared to report in once again when the beeping of an emergency signal stopped his movement.

"They have broken through!" The panicked voice of Captain Rost sounded in his ears. Karst listened for a moment more, hearing the sounds of battle and the voice of the respected second to the War-Chief barking orders before the connection went silent. Sokana gave him a look of deep concern as the Seeker clenched his fists and ground his teeth.

"Shit." Karst bit out, full of rage, directed both at the horrific actions of the Carja and his current inability to do anything about it.

Rost

Rost charged forward, driving his spear into a gap in the armor of a Carja soldier. The other man howled in pain as the captain wrenched his weapon free. Ignoring his defeated foe, Rost spun to face another. His dark hair and beard, matted with sweat and blood whipped across his face with the force of his movement.

All around him the battle raged. When the Carja first broke through the gate, he'd led his force in creating a funnel. The Carja may have broken through, but that did not mean they had free access. The gate was small, not designed to handle a large enemy force pouring through all at once so, for a small while, they were able to keep the flow of enemy soldiers rushing in at bay.

Each Carja who rushed through the gate was met with a wall of Nora Braves. Some with spears, others with bows, slings, or any other weapon they could find. Each and every defending soul did their utmost to clog the gate with the bodies of dead Carja but their force was simply too many.

The Carja continuously pushed their way over or around the growing pile of bodies to clash with the Nora defenders. Rost honestly wasn't sure how long they'd held the line before it broke but break it did. With their line destroyed, the battle became a fighting retreat deeper into the village where once more, the Nora had an advantage.

The village of Mother's Vigil was a village in name only. Ever since the first battle at the beginning of the Red Raids, it had become a fortress in truth. Every inch of the village was rebuilt and redesigned to withstand an attack. Mother's Vigil was, in essence, one giant trap.

With the gate breached and the wall of bodies scattered, the Nora fell back on their tried-and-true skills. Hunting, trapping, and hit-and-run attacks. Whatever worked, they used against their enemy. Every single house, barrack, storefront, and or whatever other building was prepared for battle.

Most had traps placed on their roofs, windows, or door frames that'd been set and primed during their hurried preparations. Even the latrines held traps and weapons! So, as the Nora retreated into the maze of buildings, they fell back on their ingrained skills and began to hunt the invaders.

Rost and his elite force became the distraction. They were the obvious threat. The large bulk of retreating warriors splitting into groups that would lead the attacking, but unsuspecting Carja into tight alleyways or trapped kill zones. Sometimes their forces would turn and face their pursuers. Other times they'd watch as the squad of Carja they'd led into a trap were flash frozen by chillwater or riddled with arrows from hunters on the roof or second floor of a nearby building.

Rost knew not the status of the other gates but in the grand scheme of things, it didn't matter. Once one gate was breached, despite their best efforts, it was only a matter of time before a force of Carja made their way to the other gates to attack their defenders from behind. Then those gates would be forced open, and a new source of enemy soldiers would pour into the village.

Even with all their clever traps and the redesign of the village, Mother's Vigil wasn't exactly huge. Certainly nothing on the scale of a city. In fact, he would compare it to being roughly the size of Daytower. Perhaps a little larger owing to being more spread out than the Carja fortress. So, it was only a matter of time before their clever traps were exhausted and their defenses overrun.

They only had two options in what had become a battle of attrition within the walls of the burning village. First was surrender. This was utterly unacceptable and Rost refused to believe that any of his Braves would willingly do so. Second was to fight. Whether till their end or until reinforcements arrived simply depended on how long their strength lasted.

Ducking under a flying arrow, Rost hurled his spear at the archer, forcing the Carja to duck. Charging forward like a Broadhead, the brunette warrior rushed his opponent. Crashing into him at breakneck speed, he slammed the soldier into the wall of some random building. Taking advantage of the Carja's dazed state, Rost stole one of the man's own arrows and plunged it into his eye.

Retrieving his spear, Rost continued to fight on, moving through the village with his Braves at his side. In one engagement, he was nearly brained by a Carja halberd but saved at the last minute by a well-placed arrow courtesy of his comrades. In another, he found himself vaulting from a rooftop and driving his spear through the neck and chest of a Carja while his fellows leapt from on high, down onto their unsuspecting prey.

It was fully night by then, with the only light coming from the burning buildings and the torches of the Carja. The dark of night and the concentration of smoke forced the Nora and Carja both to seek out the more open areas like courtyards or main streets.

Rost honestly couldn't say how the final clash became what it was. Only that somehow, he found himself stood beside Sola, his lieutenant, and what he could only guess was the final sixty to a hundred or so members of his garrison. Across the courtyard from them, bathed in the light of the burning buildings, was the remaining force of Carja. It was hard to tell, but he was sure there were at least twice as many Carja left as there were Nora. At the front, bleeding badly from a wound above his right eye, was their commanding officer. The one he'd shot at during the early stages of the battle. There was hate in the oddly familiar face as the man locked eyes with Rost. It was different than the rage burning in the faces of the other Carja but frankly, the captain didn't care to wonder at the difference.

Rost panted, coughing slightly from the smoke and the pain in his side. He'd received mostly superficial cuts and scrapes throughout the battle, but one arrow had nearly ended him. It was only thanks to his armor, and the fact that the arrowhead hit a rib rather than slipping between them, that he was still alive.

"Well, my friends." Rost sighed. "It has been an honor."

"The honor was ours, Captain." Sola coughed, giving him a look of respect. All around them, the last remaining Braves of Mother's Vigil readied for the charge. Rost raised his spear, ready to give the command when a familiar sound hit his ears. A mechanical whirring, whining noise filled the air followed by the sound of crashing wood as a machine burst its way through the wall of a burning building and plowed straight into the Carja.

The air was suddenly filled with more machine sounds as what appeared to be an entire pack of Broadheads, a four legged and horned machine charged into the square from the east. Some nearly gored nearby Nora as they charged through, forcing Rost to signal a retreat.

"Back!" He shouted, waving at them. "Away from the machines!"

Broadheads, even with the derangement, were typically skittish around large groups. He could not fathom why they would charge into the village like this, even with the gates being broken. Too much chaos, too many people.

"What the hell is going on?" Sola asked from beside him, watching the machines sew chaos amongst the Carja. Rost was once again about to speak, voicing his own bewilderment, when his Focus crackled.

"Rost!" Korg's voice shouted from the device. "If you still live, my friend, and you can hear me, get your people out! I have hunters driving a pack of Broadheads into the village. My Braves and I are less than ten minutes behind them! Head east if you can! Get out of the village!"

"Retreat!" Rost shouted, raising his spear and waving. "Back! To the eastern gate!" Pushing his fellow Braves behind him, Rost ducked under the arrows of the Carja. A few of them who hadn't been thrown into chaos by the machine pack had spotted their retreat and were in pursuit. Once more, a running battle ensued as the captain led what was left of his forces towards the ruined eastern gate. They'd only just arrived when Rost spotted his Braves throwing themselves to the left and right on either side of the gate.

"Make way!" The familiar voice of Korg shouted. Sure enough, as the crowd cleared, Rost caught sight of the burly Captain of Mother's Crown charging through the gate with a full garrison at his back. Throwing himself to the side, Rost barely avoided a collision with a number of the charging Braves.

Collapsing against the broken walls of Mother's Vigil, Rost felt his mind cloud over. Exhaustion and blood loss taking their toll on his body. As the fog descended, the last thing he registered was the worn and scarred face of Brun kneeling next to him, one hand on his shoulder. He gave his fellow captain a wan smile before the darkness descended.

Sona

Sona scowled and clenched her fist as she walked through the burnt and broken village. Ash, rubble, and other debris littered the ground as the War-Chief and her band made their way through the ruins of Mother's Vigil. At her side were Seela and Tosa, the captains of Mother's Song and Mother's Rise. With them as well were Seekers Fassa and Desh.

The smell of smoke filled the air even after nearly a full day had passed since the end of the battle. If it hadn't been for the reports sent over the Focus by Brun, Sona would have feared the worst when the broken and burned visage of the Nora fortress came into view. She was glad her idea to drive a machine pack into the fight, thereby sewing chaos amongst the Carja had worked but it was a very near thing.

Moving further in, the War-Chief let herself relax a little when she entered the ruined central yard. Gathered around a table that'd miraculously survived the devastation were her three comrades. Korg and Brun stood tall while Rost sat on a stump, nursing his bandaged side.

"War-Chief!" Brun called, giving her a salute when she came into view.

"At ease, my friends." Sona replied, waving them off. Stepping up, she placed a hand on Rost's shoulder. "Well done, captain. You and your Braves fought well and with honor."

"Thank you, War-Chief." Rost bowed his head.

Sona allowed herself a smile for her pseudo-brother. Long years of partnership and service together, not to mention the closeness of their children, had resulted in Rost and Sona seeing each other as family. A relationship that she would never regret.

"I'm glad you're still alive, Rost." She squeezed his shoulder.

"So am I, Sona." He let out a sigh of exhaustion. "I wasn't sure we'd make it for a while there. Most of us didn't." With that last utterance, he looked down at the documents sitting on the table.

"Casualty reports?" Sona asked, lifting the sheets.

"Of the six hundred Braves stationed at Mother's Vigil, only 73 still live." Rost's hollow voice reported. Sona closed her eyes in grief. It was perhaps the most devastating blow they'd been dealt throughout the entirety of the war. Certainly, the largest loss of life felt by the tribe since the last Carja invasion.

"This cannot go unanswered, War-Chief." Korg growled. "Their unprovoked aggression must be answered! Staying on the defensive is clearly no longer enough! We must push back. Teach the Carja a lesson."

"Hold on now, Korg." Tosa spoke up. "Let's not forget how they got into our lands in the first place. Are we sure that all of the traitors were killed during the first engagement?"

"We cannot allow ourselves to become overly suspicious of each other." Seela chimed in. "We must remain vigilant, but do not let paranoia keep us from pushing our advantage. Did any of the enemy escape? Does Daytower know their force has been destroyed?"

"Not at present." Rost replied. "We've taken a few captives. Around twenty or thirty, including their commander. The rest of the Carja force has been put to the spear. What scouts we've sent out report no sign of any wayward Carja and when last we spoke, Karst reported no abnormal behavior amongst the soldiers in the fort."

"Good." Sona nodded. "Have you interrogated any of your prisoners yet?"

"No, War-Chief." Brun shook his head in the negative. "We wanted to wait for your arrival."

Sona nodded her head in acknowledgement before signaling a nearby Brave. "Bring us the Carja commander!" The Brave gave her a salute before darting off towards wherever they were keeping the prisoners.

"I have spent the entirety of our march here debating with myself on what our next move should be." Sona told them while they waited. That, and making it to Mother's Vigil in time were quite literally the only things she'd thought about since word of the attack first came.

"I've spoken to the High-Matriarchs about my plan over the Focus and have received their permission. Firstly, Tosa." The female captain locked eyes with Sona. "Your concerns are valid. Surveillance on those who are known to harbor the same sentiments or attitudes as Resh will be increased, as well as a check done to make sure the traitor hasn't escaped his confinement. As for punishing the Carja," she turned back to Korg, "The High-Matriarch's were hesitant at first but have ultimately accepted my plan."

Before she could explain their next course of action, the Brave she'd sent running returned with a Carja prisoner in tow. The prisoner, bound with ropes, was pale of skin with dirty brown hair and blood smeared across his face from a prominent wound above his right eye. The bound Carja glared hatefully at Rost as he was dragged to the table.

"You." The Carja ground out, staring daggers at Sona's friend. "If I'd known you were here, I would have done everything I could to take your head!"

"Do you know me, boy?" Compared to Rost, the boy was rather young. In his early twenties at best.

"You don't remember me?" The Carja bit out. "I shouldn't be surprised. Why would a savage like you remember the family of men you butchered?!"

"Butchered?! Savage?!" Korg roared. "You invade our land without provocation, take our people as slaves, destroy everything in your path, and you have the audacity to call us savages?!"

"Calm yourself, Korg." Rost cut him off with a soothing voice, raising a hand to silence the other captain. Sona watched him carefully. Rost was studying the face of the Carja commander intensely. After a moment, a look of understanding came over him.

"I do remember you. I killed your father when you were just a boy." Rost sighed and looked down.

"That's right, you monster!" The Carja screamed, thrashing against his bonds and causing the Braves nearby to force the man to his knees. "You killed him in cold blood!"

"Rost?" Sona spoke up, watching her friend. "What's he talking about?"

"This young Carja's father, Mashil, was one of the men I was hunting during my time as a Death Seeker."

Sona whipped her gaze back to the boy. Rost had once told her about his journey into the west as a Death Seeker. A group of unknown foreigners had attacked the then undefended Mother's Vigil where Rost lived with his mate and young daughter. They'd taken prisoners to ensure the Nora would not come close, only to slaughter their captives at the border, Rost's young daughter among them. The vengeful father had claimed the right of the Death Seeker in order to chase them down.

She'd never once considered that those men would have families who would miss them, but in hindsight it made sense. It also made sense that men who would invade the territory of a peaceful tribe, take prisoners, and then slaughter them without mercy would come from the Carja tribe. She could understand the anger of the boy, but if his father was one of those intruders, then his death was warranted.

"You will likely not believe me." Rost sighed, standing, "but your father was not a good man. Many years ago, he and a group of mercenaries kidnapped a number of our people. We are still not sure what their purpose was. All we do know, is that they slaughtered their prisoners once they were done with them."

Rost stepped up to the boy, meeting his hateful gaze. There was a fire in her old friend's eyes. "I watched your father cut my six-year-old daughter's throat." The young Carja's eyes went wide, denial and reluctant understanding filling his face. "I regret that you witnessed your father's death at my hands." Rost continued, voice now a low growl, "but my daughter's mangled body demanded vengeance. Your father was a monster. He deserved justice, and I gave it to him."

"Take him away." Sona called out. Looking into the eyes of the Carja, she could see that he did not believe Rost, not yet, but his confidence was shaken. Regardless, they were not likely to get any information out of him now. "We'll start with interrogating some of your other prisoners. After that, we have a great deal to do."

A/N: Well! I do hope that soothed a few nerves about the cliffhanger last time. I know it was cruel of me to do that and then go on a longer than usual break. I do apologise for that. Please let me know your thoughts about this!

Oh, and don't worry. Another chapter is on the way soon!

Answers to Questions

On FFN

Rios: The move is all done now! I'm sorry about the cliffhanger. I didn't mean to leave you hanging for so long. Aloy will make a return next chapter and the one after that should feature her more heavily.

Bargo: I'm so glad you like my fic! You're right that the horizon fandom can feel a little barren at times when you want something specific. I'm so glad you liked what I did with Mern!

DracoFighter: Thank you!

LunaShadowWolf: I'm glad you liked it! Thank you so much! We'll be looking at Aloy and GAIA soon. Aloy at least should have a part in the next chapter.

On AO3

ReviewerDWJ2: I'm sorry about the cliffhanger, but I hope the resolution helps!

Readinginthedarkisfunnier: I hope you liked it! No cliffhanger this time! Not really. As for the war… things are dire now, but the Nora will pull through.

WolvesRock17: I'm glad you liked it! We see a bit more of that here and next chapter. I'm thinking about exploring that aspect a little further down the line with a few important moments but no promises yet.

BearsAreCoolImo: I'm glad you like it! I hope this chapter was what you wanted!

SpiritDeNight: I felt like I had to honor them! I did not intend for Yore to become such a badass. She was just supposed to be a one-off character at first, but I liked her too damn much. Needed to give her a proper sendoff.

TriforceWolf: Kudos, my friend! You were sooo close to guessing the extent of my plan! I hope you like what I did instead. Adds a little more… drama to the story of Rost.

Kindanerdy: Thank you so much! Probably not Teb x Aloy, sadly. Too much of an age gap.

Ryanlarsen: Thank you so much! As for why Ezana liked that name, I guess it's just because I like it. She's one of the Alpha's I wish we knew more about. Same reason why I had her recording be the one Aloy and Vala found.