Chương 44: A Report

The door opened and Gustave limped through. Andy's breath caught as he scanned the hawk for injuries. Thankfully he didn't see any, nothing visible anyway. Gustave was simply exhausted. His feathers were dusty, mud streaked his talons and his wings sagged.

"Gustave." Andy sent.

"The hawk's head snapped toward Andy." Relief washed through the bird's projection.

"Andrew. You're awake."

"Did you find her?" Gustave hopped onto the foot of the bed.

"I found them, followed them." Andy's heart pounded. Kesseroth chimed in.

"That was reckless. Where are they headed?" They went north. They seemed to be headed back toward the Harness' territory. Kesseroth's expression darkened.

"You are certain?"

"I am certain."

"Auri?" Andy asked.

"She was their prisoner but they were treating her with care, all things considered." The words brought an angry relief to Andy. Which was a real bizarre complex emotion. His stomach muscles loosened slightly.

"So, she's alive."

"And very very irritated." A collective sigh seemed to pass through the room.

"Good." Andy said. Everyone looked at him.

"What?" Andy said.

"If she's irritated it means she hasn't accepted her situation." Gustave nodded." That is also my assessment. She bit someone. Also, she's still in human form." Andy visibly relaxed.

"It appears as though the captors are under strict orders not to injure her""Why do you think that?"

"Because the individual she bit was reprimanded for attempting to strike her." Kesseroth's eyes narrowed.

"Interesting."

"I believe that she is being treated as property of the Harness himself. It was brought to our attention during our previous encounter with them that he wanted to procure her." Kesseroth rose abruptly and strode to the door. He opened it and called out into the hallway, "Call a meeting. Get everyone ready. Two hours."

"It appearss asss though our goals are aligned." Reginald piped up. Kesseroth closed the door and returned to his seat.

"Speak." Sir Reginald straightened his silk collar and clasped his hands together. He rose up straighter on his tail and took on the air of someone about to address an audience.

"I have travelled south from the Harness' territory looking for help." He paused dramatically.

"You ssssee. I came into being in the north." His black eyes lowered and his voice softened.

"There isss little life there. And even lessss magic." A large sigh left him as he gazed around the room projecting sadness.

"The foressstss are gone. Cut down, ssstripped and harvesssted of anything ussseful. The riversss no longer flow where they wisssh, they are redirected to ssuit the humanss who ressside there. Everything isss controlled." This novel's true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. The humming of Andy's horn took on a melancholy hum. Nobody interrupted as Reginald shifted uncomfortably and then spread his tiny hands.

"It ssseemsss ass though the world I wass brought into viewed magic not asss something wonderousss…" he said quietly, "but as a resource to be extracted." His posture sagged slightly.

"I wasss fortunate." His words projected with gratitude and guilt.

"You ssseee, I disssscovered a ssssmall foresssst untouched by Binderssss and pylonssss. A place where the wind sstill carried magic. A place where life grew becausse they wissshed to grow." He projected a bittersweet happiness and his dark eyes moistened.

"It wass there that I met my friend. Onyx. A mighty panther, magnificent and proud. He wass entirely too large to fit in half of the placess he insssissted on going." A few scattered chuckles escaped the room.

"You sssee. He taught me everything. And not just me, mind you. It wass his life'ss misssion to protect and help to cultivate ssophontss. He taught us how to identify dangerouss thingss, how abilitiess worked, how evolution worked, and how to ssurvive." The fond smile he had been projecting along with his words faded.

"Mossst importantIy, he taught uss to avoid humanss. Onyx would tell sstories at night. Sstoriess passsed down from his parentss, his grandparentss. Ssstoriess of unicornss, of kitsuness, of dragonss, all matter of beassst-kin, and treess that walked. A time when the world wass ripe with more ssophonic sspecies than I could ever imagine. I thought they were children'ss talesss." He laughed sadly, "I ssee now that I was wrong." He took a deep shuddering breath before continuing.

"Sseveral monthsss back. The Binderss came with their pylonss." He clenched his fistss.

"They began draining the foresst of itss magic, of itss life. It was like watching the foresst ssslowly bleed to death. The Binderss captured any creature that they ssuspected had magic, any creature that was unussual or that they conssidered valuable." Reginald's tiny hands trembled and clenched.

"Onyx fought them, becaussse that'ss who he wass. He fought them ssso that I could esscape, and they took him. I was ssmall, and I hid like he taught me." The admission was painful and his projected emotions showed that.

"I am ssmall. You ssee, sssmall creaturess ssurvive by not being noticed." Bitterness coated each word.

"I watched them take him and the otherss away, while I did nothing." For several seconds he gathered his composure.

"I followed them north to a facility built into the mountainss. Masssive wallss, guardsss everywhere. I sspent weekss taking notess, obsserving. I never found the courage to make it insside."

"One morning they opened the gatess. They releassed a creature. It was Onyx–and at the ssame time–it was not. He'd been twisssted," His voice cracked and pained, guilty sadness filled the room, "piecess of other creaturess had been grafted onto him. Limbss that moved incorrectly, wingsss that didn't seem functional. Magic that did not belong to him. He wass in ssso much pain. He could barely ssstand. He howled in agony. The guardss carried devicess on long poles."

"They sshocked him. Again. Again. And Again. Every time he turned toward them, every time he tried to lie down, every time he wailed. They would hurt him. They hurt him until he ran."

"I wanted to help. But what could I do?" His voice became a whisper.

"The guardss pursssued him. In their hasste they left a transssport unattended." Reginald straightened, "Ssso I did what any rational and heroic individual would do." A dramatic pause, his cape caught a stray breeze. Andy's horn trumpeted a heroic success chord.

"I hid under a crate."

"It wass there that I learned the truth. They had performed an alchemical ritual usssing sstolen magic. They called it corruption. It is an infection, and alsso a lure." His voice hardened.

"They are deliberately creating monsterss that would ssseek out concentrationss of magical energy." His eyes found Andy.

"Living tracking devicess." He swallowed.

"They followed Onyx to a foressst." Reginald looked away.

"When they arrived, he wass already dead. It was a mercy. Whatever they had turned him into– it was not a life." He drew a shaky breath.

"Onyx deserved better. Much better. The men took their readingsss, they celebrated, they argued. The concentration of magic wass the largest any of them had ever seen. They loaded their sssupplies and began the journey north. Arguing over who would get credit for their s success" The last word came out harshly.

"And then I heard it. You. Not with my ears, I heard your confesssion. I felt your emotionss. Everything you were feeling wasss being projected sso purely. Sso loudly. You were telling your ssstory Andrew Snodgrasss, who would be a horse what once wass a sssingle-celled organissm."

"The men were arguing, there wass a fight. I ussed the commotion to abandon the transsport and head sssouth." Reginald ssspread his hands.

"It took agess. When I arrived the foresst was changing. I was nearly trapped inssside. By the time I esscaped, sssoldiers were marching through what I asssume was your home." The tip of his tail vibrated and twitched against the floor.

"I acquired another ride." His arms swept theatrically.

"And then you exploded." Reginald sat straight once more.

"I came to ask for your help. To stop the facility. To stop the Binders. To stop the Harness. To ensure they never do what they did to Onyx to anyone else, ever again. For him." A tear ran down his cheek. Then he looked back up.

"And it would ssseem that thiss is now your goal as well."