Loss

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He was standing in the cavern alone and afraid.

He tried looking for his siblings, but he couldn’t find them, and the lack of sound in the empty space was terrifying. Fear gripped his chest.

It was so quiet…

A sharp pain set in his chest and ripped through his back, sending him reeling. As he kneeled, he cried for his siblings and… for Mother.

Looking towards the center of the cavern with deep longing, he saw her.

She was there!

His heart fluttered as he ran to Mother, the pain and fear disappearing. Mother would always be there, he thought with joy as he ran faster.

But something was wrong…

As he ran, Mother began walking away.

She was leaving him!

He ran even faster with all the strength he had, but no matter what he did, he could never get closer to Mother. He cried and pleaded with her not to leave, but she kept going. She was leaving, and he would be all alone.

He opened his eyes with a groan, a searing pain rippling through his chest and back. His whole body hurt, and his muscles refused to move. Looking around, he saw that he was in a small rock-like structure with metal rods trapping him inside. He started flexing his fingers and arms, trying to work them, but flinched when he heard a loud noise.

“The prisoner is awake!” The human shouted with a start, turning and running up the tunnel.

'Stupid humans were too loud!' He thought with a sneer.

Everything came back in a wave of emotions, and loss gripped his broken heart. Covering his face with his hands, he wept, the sounds of his sobs echoing in the prison cell and throughout the tunnels beyond.

Mother was dead.

Killed by the horrible humans. His siblings were most likely dead, and the humans had taken him captive. His last memory still burned in his soul. Of Mother… her eyes…

He choked as his sobs echoed further, slowly turning into wails.

Then the wails turned into growls as sparks of fury spread through him like wildfire, pouring strength into his broken body. He would kill them all! They would taste his suffering and know the loss that he felt. He closed his eyes, sensing the bond...

And his eyes shot back open.

'They lived!'

He could feel that the Bond had lessened, which meant that several of his siblings had died but most had survived. He was immediately reminded of the escape tunnel, and he praised Mother for her cleverness. It meant that his siblings were still in the tunnels, and he just had to make it back to them. Though Mother was gone and the pain was too much to bear, his siblings needed him. He had to make it back to them. He wouldn't let them down... or Mother.

They still had a chance.

Finding newfound strength, he fought through the pain and rose to a sitting position. It felt like his whole body was on fire as he gripped his chest, feeling the source of his troubles. He didn’t clearly remember what had happened to him, but he could feel it and was shocked that he was alive at all. A large wound, slightly healed over, ran down the center of his chest and was mirrored on his back.

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Pushing himself further, he started to try and stand but froze hearing hurried footsteps coming down the tunnel. Tensing, ready to defend against his attackers, he froze yet again, eyes going wide at the one who stepped in front of him.

It was the human he had captured in the tunnels.

He would never forget those eyes.

Following her were several other humans who looked like they were all figures of authority. He stared at the human with hate-filled eyes, as if to pierce through her with his glare. He rose slowly, coming within eye level.

She stared back with an almost sad look, but also with a sense of determination. He could see that she was some type of leader for these humans. Regret consumed him, knowing that none of this would have happened if he had simply killed her in the tunnels. Sighing, he knew it was too late for regrets so he glared menacingly at the human as she pulled a glittering rock from her pocket and threw it to the floor at his feet.

Looking down, he saw that it was some kind of rock, but with his Sight, he could see it glowing faintly, and markings were within its surface. Looking back at the human, she nodded at the crystal for him to grab it. Although he didn’t trust any of them, his curiosity got the best of him.

He bent down slowly, picking up the crystal, gasping when his fingers touched its surface. Strange sounds assaulted his mind in a cacophony of madness as they jumbled together in a confusing mess. Pain tore through his mind, and he growled, dropping the crystal. Eyes wide and panting, he looked up in alarm, glaring at the human.

She nodded back at the crystal as if demanding that he pick it back up. But he could also see a hint of worry, or was it doubt? Breathing heavily, he weighed his options, but something else was nagging at him. The mumbles reminded him of the markings, as if there was some connection. He couldn’t help but think that this knowledge might give him a chance to understand their meaning.

Sitting down with his legs crossed, he picked the crystal back up. This time, he was prepared for the chaos that tried to assault his mind. He held his focus and grunted with pain. Blood trickled from his nose as the murmurs filled his thoughts, but he strained to endure them. After several moments, he was able to focus on a single sound, its words becoming clearer. The sound was no longer overbearing, and their knowledge began to seep into his mind.

Releasing his breath, he relaxed, trying to absorb the information.

He could feel his thoughts becoming clearer, as if a fog had been lifted. The knowledge within the crystal was the knowledge to communicate. Not the guttural instinctive sounds used by Mother and his siblings, which were more the bond than true language.

This was complete.

'There was a name for everything!' He gasped, heart racing from a sense of wonder. It felt as if his mind space was taking shape, solidifying, becoming something more.

Letting the whispers fade out, he opened his eyes, looking at the woman in front of him. She was a woman. He couldn’t believe how much better he could think. It was like he had seen the world for the first time all over again. She turned away, and the group headed back up the exit, leaving behind a single human woman. Shaking and nervous, she stepped forward and began to speak to him in a rather soft voice.

“I am Verona,” She said, pointing at herself.

“Verona,” he replied roughly, his throat new to such awkward sounds.

“Good,” she nodded happily, pulling out a book from a pack on her side.

“Book,” he said immediately.

She smiled, nodding in approval and began to flip the pages, showing him various pictures and objects. They sat and practiced his understanding of the words he had learned, and she realized he had an amazing memory and praised him.

Several days went by in this way as Verona tried to teach him mundane things and give him practice using his voice. He continued to absorb as much information as possible from the crystal, but she would scold him if he attempted too much. She tried to show him ways to sing to build vocal strength, but he refused. Singing was for Sister, and he wouldn’t take her glory. Thinking of his siblings always brought a longing to his heart.

He had to make it back to them, no matter what.

On the seventh day, Verona was not the one to return. It was the blue-eyed woman surrounded by guards. He stood and faced her with defiance. With venom and pure hatred in his eyes, he shouted as loud as he could.

“Murderers!” He roared.

The woman flinched in alarm as the guards stepped forward, drawing weapons. Finding her composure, she stood firm and looked him in the eye as he continued his tirade.

“You killed Mother!” He shouted, choking back sobs. “She did nothing to you. We did not harm your people!” He cried, his voice awkward and stilted. “Your people are killers! You took her from us. You had no right!”

“What about my father?” She shouted, stepping forward. “We found his remains in the Nest. What did your people do?” She asked, her face red, and her eyes full of grief.

“Wah…Who?” He barked at her, taken back. After thinking about what she said, a realization dawned on him. The crown, or at least the remains he had taken the crown from, in Mother's treasure. One of the adventurers Mother had killed to protect the Nest, he had thought, but it was obviously someone important.

Searching through Mother’s teachings, he discovered something wasn’t right with what she said. He found that things weren’t as he had thought either; Mother did not attack the man.

He was already dying.

Looking at the woman, still red in the face, he smiled wide.

“That fool. Mother sure showed him.” He lied, wanting her to feel the pain he felt, as they were killers and didn’t deserve his mercy.

“Bind and gag him,” she ordered.

The guards moved forward with drawn weapons and a hard look in their eyes.