Through Tears and Bloodshed

Ten||Life and Death

That night, I slept beside Naxan under the stars, dreaming of nothing, blanketed in darkness. My sight was hindered, but my other senses were alive. At first, I thought I was awake, and my eyes were still closed, but I soon came to realize this was not the case. Although I was seemingly blind, I was not scared. Comfortable was a word I could use to describe my current state.

The air touching my skin was cooling, like a thick salve healing a festering wound. I tingled all over, feeling vibrations around me from afar.

"Navidean." A firm hand grasped my wrist.

My eyes shot open, and I glanced around the open desert where the sun had yet to touch. It was well past dawn, and people were moving about.

"Good morning, Twoleg," Naxan's voice grumbled within my mind.

I yawned, stretching out my body until I felt looser than a worn-out piece of rope. "Good morning." I patted the side of his body, feeling his hard scales underhand.

Naxan's nose twitched as he turned his head in the direction of the sleeping women. Their chests softly rose and fell as they were tucked away within their dreamland. Naxan tilted his head as he heard the cries of the newborn baby sleeping beside her mother.

"Sounds like she's hungry," I smiled softly, adoring the little babe. Sigrid rose immediately, fussing over the child wrapped in an off-white cloth. When Sigrid tried pulling the child from her mother's grasp, she paused to stare at Helah with a knowing look in her gaze.

Hanging her head, she placed a hand over Helah's hand, holding it there in a comforting manner. I stared in confusion, only to realize what happened once Sigrid's teary eyes looked toward me.

"No," I whispered.

Sigrid nodded once, clutching the crying child in her arms as she stood. "At least she got a shot of colostrum. She'll be okay until we get to civilization."

"Mother is dead?" Naxan asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Yes," I said. I watched as Sigrid swaddled the child tighter, cooing to her so she'd calm down. "We should bury her," I concluded aloud.

"That would be nice," Sigrid agreed as she stared at the sleeping child. Devika's hands were turning white with how much she squeezed them, constantly wringing them as if she didn't know what to do. Her watery blue eyes closed as she stared toward the sky.

Carlyn bowed her head to Helah's, whispering a prayer in secret. I turned my head away so as not to pry.

I stood and wandered away from the women so they could have their time to grieve over the loss of their friend before we laid her to rest under the earth. It was not the best place, as the desert was constantly shifting, and it was not her home, but we could not carry her the rest of the journey.

Finding a spot as good as any, I began digging sand away with my hands to form a makeshift hole; however, every time I moved the sand, more would fill its place. I scoffed, wiping my brow in frustration.

"Has she gone crazy?" With my advanced hearing, I listened as the vampire and feline approached behind me to watch my actions, but I didn't make any indication I heard their advances.

I heard what sounded like skin-on-skin contact and a small yelp. "Ouch, Kamira! What was that for?"

"Just because."

Sitting back on my heels, I craned my neck to observe the two creatures behind me with narrowed eyes.

"Uh," Drystan cleared his throat. "Good morning, little rider."