Chapter Text
Titankin lay crumbled at his feet in piles of indiscernible rubble. Blood dripped over the ground with each staggering step he took. With fur as dark as night, eyes as kind as sweet hazelnuts and a soft scent of tobacco that clings to his very figure. The temple of Janus has laid witness to many events both miraculous and catastrophic. In the wake of its destruction brings forth a creature from the shadows of the mountain top.
The young priest looked up in pure awe.
" Thank you..." He muttered breathlessly, his elderly father under his arm. Wounded but alive.
The creature of the shadows spoke, with a ragged breath and rough voice. Exhaustion and worry evident in his kind eyes. " Be careful."
His sharp ears twitch, his head perks up to where they last saw the Chrysos Heir had ventured down. Despite his clear injuries, he made way towards the broken path, leaving rubble and blood behind. The creature of Twilight, which rose through the night and graced the dawn, would one day be known to the priests of Janus as Lykos.
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His instincts were strong, it had led him through his life and the many trials he's faced from his earliest years. It kept him alive, helped him thrive and stand above as the apex of all predators. Now, it leads him through the confusing and unusual scents that flooded his senses, focusing only on what was familiar.
The traces of his younglings.
He cared not for the constant stream of blood that weighs upon his black coat or the sheer number of stone creatures who stood in his way. What mattered most were the younglings. He weaves through the ruins and shadows with ease, the cover of the night with his coat made him akin to a moving mass of darkness.
The scent of maple leaves and sea salt wasn't far, the subtle and sweet smell of vanilla so close now. The fog in his mind blurs the edges of his vision, making it swim with every pulsating wave of migraine.
There. The pain subsides for but a moment, the sight of his young clearing his sights.
He lands behind a pillar, his boots making contact with the ground in a staggering step. The group turns in his direction in alarm. With his coat tied tightly around the wound, he uses one hand to press down and stop the bleeding. He growls at the scene before him.
A broken spear and a stolen bat.
" Stay away from them." He holds himself up steadily, baring his teeth and glaring at the two strangers who dared to unarm his younglings.
" Mr Wolf!" The young dragon is immediately by his side and the stellar girl takes the other.
He wants to pull them back, hide them until the threat is gone but the younglings are stubborn. Fingers snapped, stardust sparked and he feels the wound mend itself before it tears him open again with a sickening sound. He bites back the cry with a growl, stumbling forward to his knees and clutching the newly bleeding mass that once trickled when he arrived but now flows like an open tap.
" Oh no!" A small red haired figure, childish in demeanor and appearance, approaches him with clear concern.
He snaps his jaws, a warning. The white one seems to understand, placing a hand over the smaller one to keep her from getting too close. He keeps an arm out, Dan Heng and Stelle being nudged behind him as he tries to stand.
" Please, we don't mean you any harm." Despite his placating tone, the Wolf doesn't believe him.
He finds his strength again, pushing his younglings behind him with snappy jaws and bristling growls.
" You're hurt really bad." The smaller one says, shrugging off the hand on her shoulder. " We have healers. Please, let us help you."
Ernest as her plea was, he does not believe her either. But, the way Dan Heng silently puts himself under one arm to support him and Stelle bunching the cloth of his ruined coat like a lifeline persuades him otherwise. His growls softened and soon ceased as he managed his breaths, relaxing slightly into the support offered.
" I'm Phainon, from Aedes Elysiae." He introduced himself. " Your weapon, Miss...?" He trailed off, holding out one end of the bat.
" A friend called me Gray." She rests her bat over one shoulder.
" Wolf." He grunts, leaning a bit more into Dan Heng. The young man looked between the two before sighing and shaking his head.
" Dan Heng. I'm sorry but we're pressed for time." He says, watching as the little one picks up the other half of his spear.
" The camp's this way." They say, walking in the direction where Bigby had actually come from.
He tightened the makeshift wrap around the wound, gaining a bit more strength to walk straighter with Dan Heng's help. The small refuge didn't have too many people, most were priests or guards stationed at the temple. He's set down on a woven mat, healers with proper bandages and clean water set upon him. As displeased as he is for his younglings to separate themselves from him, he knew they were needed and let them go.
They followed the small one, he had yet to catch Their name, to go after a rogue priest.
" This wound...." One of the healers muttered once they peeled away the cloth.
He looks down at the bleeding mess. The flesh of his abdomen healing quickly, muscle and sinew stitching back together only for it to be torn open again like a knife had been slid over it.
" Should we alert the Chrysos Heir?"
He grunts, sitting himself up to swipe away their prodding hands. Reaching for the ruined coat, he feels around for the hidden pocket and pulls out his pipe. He hands it over to the nearest healer.
" Fill this up for me and light it up." He ordered, a look from his yellow eyes spared no room for argument. The healer, though bewildered, did as he asked.
Before long, the pipe is filled and lit. With a huff of smoke, the Wolf finds a momentary reprieve from the pain. The pale grey smoke trails out of the corners of his mouth with a long drawn out sigh. The blood lessens, flesh healing far more slowly now. The healers exchange a look before continuing to treat the wound.
" I forgot to ask. What is this?" He asked them, waving his pipe a little as they finished the wound dressing.
" Kanav. We usually burn them for rituals and rites."
Bigby mulled over the word, taking another toke. He sighed, letting the drug do its job in order to ease his own pain. He's never had one of these before but there was a first for everything. Considering it was a medical need this time, he's sure Jiaoqiu would excuse him if he found out.
Hopefully.
" I didn't take you one for such... indulgence." The white haired man approached him after doing a round of the perimeter.
" I'll take what I can get." He grunted, the mouth of the pipe between his teeth and lip curled up in a snarl. " Keep your distance from us."
" ... Just trying to make conversation." The man muttered, taking a couple steps back but not quite leaving. " I understand if you're wary of us but I really do mean to help you. There's a dromas caravan that will be arriving some time soon to move the refugees to the holy city. We'll be able to take you and your companions safely where you can get better treatment for your unique affliction. If that doesn't work out then we can contact the Twilight Courtyard from the Grove of Epiphany to have a look at you."
The Wolf only puffed a mouthful of smoke in his direction.
" Are you bothering him again, Snowy?" The little one asked, returning with the other two outlanders.
" Again?" He repeated, incredulous.
" They patched you up!" Stelle immediately moved to his side, taking the pipe straight out of his hands and dumping the contents into a nearby pot before handing it back.
" ...I smoked enough of it anyway."
" There's some pretty interesting views here." She says as she sat next to him. " I'll show you sometime."
He snorts.
" The dromas caravan that's supposed to meet us isn't here yet, so let's all rest where it's safe for a while." The white one said.
" Regrettably, our questions are still unanswered, and we now have even more. Now that things have calmed down, perhaps you two can find the time to answer a few of them?"
" Of course."
Through the whispers he gathered from the healers and surrounding priests, the world was ending. People speak of it as something expected, a prophecy apparently. Chrysos Heir seems to refer to a certain brand of individuals that clearly screamed importance and obvious trouble.
" I see the three of you have been made aware of our troubles. I'm grateful for your understanding, so in return, please ask me anything you wish to know." The white one says.
Unfortunately, the fucker's answers to Stelle's questions are way too short and lacking what's probably very important details. It's like the guy isn't even trying to be more helpful with that dumb smile. He reminds Bigby of those annoying heroes that dare to cross paths with the Big Bad Wolf, the kind that spoke of justice and vengeance. Nothing but mere excuses in their race for glory and fame.
No, this was definitely something else.
" Right! Virtus and the others are priests from Janusopolis. They should be adept at playing the lyre. How about playing a song for our new friends?" Tribbie suggested to the priests. " There's a ballad that's been passed down in Amphoreus since ancient times..."
He closed his eyes, headaches rolling in again as Tribbie recalled the ballad. For some it might look like he was immersing himself into the lyrics but that was far from the case. He was definitely listening, make no mistake but he could hear something else in the distance.
The steps that shake the earth in a steady rhythm, most similar to elephants. He could feel them, hear them through the earth with his fingers. It must be the caravan the white one talked about. The closer the creatures got, the heavier their steps. The younger ones could hear them already judging from how they shifted around him. He remained silent, playfully listening to their brief panic which he remained silently idle of.
Apparently he wasn't the only one who found this amusing. " Hahaha! Don't worry. That's just our rescue. Time to get up, everyone!"
Dinosaurs.
That's the only description he had for the arriving caravan. Big long necks, a gentle face and stubby padded legs. With blue and purple skin like you'd see in a child's colouring book, their blue eyes are rather expressive. All at once they seemed curious yet uncaring, kind but aggressive. The impressive size makes him think of how easily his teeth could go around their neck and how full his belly would be.
One of them just threw off his kid.
He growls at the beast, a dromas as they are called. He side eyes the white one as Stelle picked herself up and hurries back.
" This is your idea of docile!?"
" I forgot to mention. Don't touch their white stone humps. When the Earth Titan blessed these creatures, it's said they also stuffed their ill tempers into these humps." Phainon laughed nervously.
Carefully, and cautiously, Stelle climbs up the dromas. They could hear her celebrate at the top. Shaking his head fondly, Dan Heng helps Bigby up onto the back of the creature.
Tribbie fluttered their little wings, looking around. " Is everyone properly seated? Then we're off! Next stop: Okhema!"
As the dromas moved, the members of the Astral Express leaned more comfortably into the saddles. Stelle's eyes were already blinking slowly and it was clear sleepiness was overtaking her. He chuffs at her, shifting slightly to make space for her to lie down. She snuggles up to his side, resting her head on his shoulder and soon falls fast asleep.
Dan Heng watches them as they rest, Bigby chuffed at him too but he declined. Instead taking their wrists and checking their pulses. The tension on his shoulders lessened with every repeating check and once he was satisfied, sat a little closer to them. Broken spear still tucked under his arm, Dan Heng sighs and stares into the designs.
" You okay?" Bigby asked.
" I'm alright." The dragon answered. " Is your wound still bleeding?"
" At the moment, no." He said. " I'm not sure what hit me but it stings like hell. It seems to respond to ranges of healing. My own regeneration only makes it worse."
" So that's why Stelle's Third Strike didn't work on you." Dan Heng hummed. " Hopefully, they have professionals in Okhema to help."
" They seemed pretty earnest but I wouldn't let my guard down yet."
" Agreed."
They shared a silent moment of peace throughout the trip.
But, the peace did not last.