Cal's gaze lingered on the cervidians as they encircled their fallen brother, a tableau of shared loss beneath the dimming sky. His fingers closed around the egg in his pocket, its surface smooth and unexpectedly warm against his skin. Amid the sounds of the forest beasts scrambling through the entrance, the low murmur of the cervidians' ritualistic chant seemed to resonate within him, a haunting cadence that transcended language.

He didn't know the meaning, but it felt right—like a key turning within an ancient lock, or a half-remembered dream surfacing from the depths of memory.

Elena stood apart, watching the proceedings with a respectful distance. Her bow, still humming with residual energy, was now at ease in her hands. She caught Cal's eye briefly, a silent exchange passing between them—one of understanding, an acknowledgment of the moment's gravity.

The air grew cooler as the short ritual ended.

Cal wiped the blood off his arm with the remains of his tuxedo jacket. The battle's din faded into an eerie hum that blanketed the ravaged field – the beasts were still flooding in. He glanced at Elena, her violet eyes scanning the aftermath, her bow still poised for any lingering threat.

The cervidians were also quick to finish their ritual and stored the body of their fallen ally in a spatial treasure. They then turned to approach Cal and Elena.

"Without your aid, this could have gone differently," Cal said, nodding to the towering cervidians. Their antlers were like natural crowns, pointy and prideful. Their armor reminded him of the fallen warrior’s.

"Your bravery turned the tide," Elena added, her voice steady but laced with respect. The cervidians exchanged looks, their postures relaxing slightly, acknowledging the rare praise.

Elena crouched beside the fallen beast, her fingers tracing the singed fur where her electric arrows had struck. She glanced at the cervidians, their maces lowered now, the threat extinguished.

Jaxon stepped forward, his height casting a long shadow over the pair. "Broskis, tell me, how should we split this fox." he grunted.

"Beast core," she stated flatly, violet eyes piercing the dimming light. "I want it."

The cervidians exchanged glances. Their large, calloused hands still gripped their weapons, but their posture shifted from combat-ready to casual.

"Sure thing, peaches," Jaxon chuckled, a grin breaking across his muzzle. "You fried the critter; you get the sparkly stone."

Another cervidian snorted in amusement, wiping his brow with a forearm. "Shiny bauble for the lady."

"Everything else is yours," Elena confirmed, her gaze never leaving the place where the core would be nestled within the carcass.

"Fair deal," Jaxon declared, and the trio nodded in agreement.

"Could've used that core as a night-light," One of the cervidians jested with a wink at his brothers, eliciting a round of deep-throated laughter from the group. It was a sad laughter, though. It was forced, and Cal could see the truth in their eyes.

Elena allowed herself the ghost of a smile. A silent acknowledgment of the jest before she set to work, her skilled hands moving with purpose as she extracted the coveted core from the fox. The air hummed with its latent energy, a prize worth the peril.

In the aftermath of the battle, the air was heavy with the scent of charred fur and spilled blood. Elena tucked the pulsating beast core into her own spatial treasure and Jaxon did the same with the fox carcass.

"Names are Jaxon," the tallest cervidian began, brushing a hand along his antlers, "and these are my brothers, Jabor and Joe."

"Good to finally meet, bros," said Jabor, nodding.

Joe grunted an acknowledgment, his large eyes scanning the clearing as if searching for another fight.

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"Jobe was people," Jaxon's voice dipped, a rare softness bleeding through his usual bravado. He pointed a thumb at the still figure lying some distance away. "Our brother."

Jabor interjected, his gaze darkening. "This land is unforgiving."

"Unsafe at every turn," Joe added, his statement simple, but weighty with truth.

"Brotherhood above all," muttered Jaxon, his head bowed.

"Always," echoed Joe, picking up a small bundle of herbs from his pouch and eating them.

“You, rude human, where did you find those vambraces?” The veneer of amicability disappeared, only left with cold silence.

Cal felt the weight of Jaxon's stare, as heavy as the vambraces themselves. "I suppose it was a gift," he replied curtly, meeting the cervidian's gray eyes.

"From who?" Jaxon demanded, taking a step closer. His tone brooked no argument, entitlement etched into every syllable.

"Someone who saved my life," Cal answered, his blue eyes unwavering. Cal had already noticed the similar artisanship on Jaxon’s own armor. Each word was a measured drop, revealing nothing more than necessary.

"Convenient," Jaxon sneered. "Just like you humans to stumble upon power and claim it as your own."

Elena shifted, an arrow silently notching to her string. Her stance promised violence if Jaxon pressed further.

"Believe what you will," Cal countered firmly. "But know this: these vambraces have seen me through worse than idle threats."

Jaxon's nostrils flared, his body tense as a bowstring, yet he held back.

Cal's fingers grazed the surface of his vambraces, feeling the intricate engravings that had become as familiar as his own heartbeat. He softened, remembering the cervidian’s nature. "I was gifted them by a cervidian just like yourself. He lay on his deathbed, and entrusted me their future," he began, his voice steady with the gravity of remembrance.

"Most of his armor was shattered, his life all but extinguished. I know little about his story..." Cal paused, eyes distant. "But I shared in his last moments. He was a guiding light while I too was struggling to survive."

Elena coughed.

The cervidians turned and stared at her.

“Nothing, nothing, continue.”

Jaxon's expression hardened, interest piqued beneath the brawn. "And what did this stranger have to say? What profound last words passed between you for him to bequeath you his legacy?"

Cal inhaled deeply, the scent of charred earth and spilled ichor filling his nostrils. He exhaled slowly, choosing his words with care.

“Cal, I would not tell them – it may have unpredictable consequences.”

“I think I need to.” Cal replied.

"Cal, revealing this could be more than just sharing history. It could pull you into something we have no control over. They could ask for the research back."

He hesitated, the weight of consequence heavy on his shoulders. The vambraces on his arms felt cold, alien yet part of him. Trust was a gamble with high stakes.

“Ah... eskapo... dieru’ka, maru...mori’ka...”

Cal had not thought of translating these words before, and perhaps it was rash to say them now.

A flicker of understanding passed through Jaxon's steely gaze. For a moment, the divide between human and cervidian seemed to narrow. Words of warriors transcended worlds, binding them in silent acknowledgment of the fight they all shared.

"Traitors better not meet me in hell, it's been swag, bro.” Cal knew Jaxon repeated the words, now translated for him by the translation guideweave. "Nice sentiment. It was truly my brother.”

"Huh," Cal conceded, locking eyes with the cervidian.

A tremor passed through Cal's hand as he reached for the journal's leather cover, its creases familiar under his fingertips. Temp's voice, a synthetic whisper in his ear, urged caution. “This journal still has value to us.”

Cal agreed.

"Jaxon," Cal said, his voice steady despite the turmoil within, "he wrote of standing shoulder to shoulder with those who harbor the heart of a warrior. 'In defiance, we find strength; in camaraderie, our spirits soar.' That's what he believed."

Around them, the forest held its breath, shadows cast over the cervidians' solemn faces. The light form outside was dimming and Cal knew that night would soon be upon them.

Jaxon nodded slowly, his calculating eyes softening.

"Defiance and camaraderie," he murmured. Jaxon turned to his kin, his posture uncharacteristically vulnerable. "These words... it is very much so Jerry's spirit. That fucker, why’d he go off and die on us."

The cervidians exchanged glances, their antlers silhouetted against the starry sky. A collective grief knitted between them. They knocked their antlers together as if to commiserate their shared loss. Their gazes lingered on Cal, seeing not an outsider but a bearer of their brother's essence.

"Jerry was our big brother," Joe spoke up, his voice cracking like dry twigs underfoot. "Fuck. First Jobe and now Jerry!"

"It is settled," Jaxon declared. "You shall join us, and we shall join you!”

Elena and Cal stood there, confused. “Huh?”

Boots crunched on the scorched earth as the group began their trek, the cervidians falling into step with the humans. As they moved, Cal caught the shimmer of trust in Jaxon's eyes. He didn’t know what he did to engender it, but he took it in stride nonetheless.

They journeyed in silence, save for the rustle of leaves and the distant call of frenzied creatures. Their previous campsite loomed ahead, a promise of rest. Cal's mind raced with thoughts of the future, of allies found in unlikely places, and of an egg, its secrets cocooned within its shell.

Embers danced in the night as the campfire crackled, a beacon amidst the dark expanse. Cal settled on a log, his vambraces catching the firelight with an eerie gleam. The cervidians, hulking shadows against the flames, gathered close, their eyes reflecting a deep sadness that could not be shaken.