Her Blood On Your Hands: Part 12

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*This story is from Old Age Canon. Some of the lore may have changed.

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Previous: Her Blood On Your Hands: Part 11 | Author: WinterAnswer

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"Unkli, I need to know what you said to them."  Nuly swallowed down a piece of lizard meat that served as their meal.  It tasted light, but it was better than any vegetable flesh they had eaten for the past few days.

"Why?"  Unkli seemed to suckle at her meat, stealing it's favor before letting slide down her throat.

"My general will be asking you the same questions.  Who you are, where you're from, and why you decided to accompany me.  Your words have to be my words, otherwise she'll know something is wrong."

"You're afraid they'll find out I'm Shigu."  She licked at her lips as she stared at Nuly.

"Yes.  They might also use you as leverage."

"Me as leverage?" she confusingly asked.  "Used against you?"  They spoke softly enough so no one on the other side of the door could hear them.

"Yes, they already have threatened my parents if I had defected to Clan Shigu, and now that I'm returning with news of my failure, I'm not sure what they'll do.  They may suspect me as a Shigu double-agent and doubt my loyalty.  They'll try to find any differences in our stories if we don't prepare."

"The way you talk about your superiors like this makes me question why you're really a Reono," Unkli stated with a slight smile.  "Are they forcing you to do this?  Do they take northerners off the street and threaten them if they don't join the Reono cause?"

"No no," Nuly shook her head.  "I volunteered consensually.  I even received my parents' blessing when I proposed the idea of joining the army."  She sighed as she extracted a small chuck of meat from between her teeth.  "To tell the truth, southerners are not the most polite towards our kind.  They look at you differently, talk to you differently.  You could be walking down the street and they would throw shit your way."  Bringing up such bad memories agitated her, but Nuly tried to push back that hot wave of emotion.

"Sounds fantastic then," Unkli responded sarcastically, laying another strip of meat on her pink tongue.  "Do they spit at you too, scream names?"

"Some will even try to fight you for no cause at all.  So you can still fight southerners at least when we get there."  Nuly showed a crooked smile, attempting to take on Unkli's light-hearted attitude.

"Fear is what won me over," she suddenly said after a few silent instances.  "You convinced me when you told me about the General's intended path for us."  She scrapped a claw at the bloody residue on the wooden plate their meal was served on, licking at it.  "You told me the General had no affection for us, we were only her pawns you said.  She was planning something dark, evil against us, and I believed you.

"And that's what you'll say to my general?"

"Of course," she responded with her blue orbs watching her.  "Words are just words.  They can hurt just as much as a cut across the arm or an arrow to the chest, but that's only if you mean it.  Or you could say something nice, something that could warm someone's heart, and it hurts even more when you find she didn't even mean it."

Nuly was partially startled by her statement, her tail lashing about.  "Those weren't lies," she tried to tell her.

"There's no reason for you to talk like that anymore, it's over."  She attempted to wave it off.

"I could have said you were Shigu."  Those words immediately gained Unkli's attention.  "But I didn't.  I could say that you're Shigu now, but I won't.  If you held nothing in my heart, no liking in my being, I wouldn't care what they would do to you in their prisons and cells.  But," she spoke softly, "you do."

Unkli broke her eye contact, looking off at a wall as her breath became irregular.  "Once we get to your home, Gucaillo," she finally said, "and your general decides not to imprison either of us, what will happen?"

"I'm not sure.  I could be reassigned to a new front, made into a guard, or simply discharged for failure to complete my mission."

"And me?"

"That's harder to know," Nuly confessed.  "You could be forced to join our army or just let loose, but that seems unlikely."

"We could just go and never return," she smilingly suggested, but Nuly took that as a serious proposal.

"No, like I said, they've threatened the welfare of my family.  I can't just leave."

"Hmmm, yes," Unkli said as she lapped at the water in her wooden cup.

"We have to see this through.  Whatever that is to happen, we will survive.  Tell me what you're going to say again, we have to go over some more details."  She and Unkli would do so for much of the rest of the day.  They had no indication of the sun's height in the sky, but Nuly knew night would be close.  Even so, she made sure they both possessed the same story and it's many particulars.  Sleep was a quick ordeal as Nuly felt Unkli move against her back as they both slept on the floor.  It wasn't that the bed was too small for her, but it was the fact that Nuly couldn't decently sleep knowing Unkli laid on the hard floor alone.

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Morning greeted Nuly with a renewed sense of hopefulness and determination, and with Unkli curled up against her.  Eyes aimed to the northwest with the horizon blocked by the bulk of the mountains the city occupied, but the Nevrean guides had no intent of moving around them.  There were laid paths and roads that would lead to the other side towards the immense Sailzane desert.  The colors of the morning sky were beginning to morph and brighten when they set off.

"You be sure to tell your general about my generosity," General Pilamus told Nuly as she looked off at the heights in the distance.  "Sending my troops out so far and in the desert nonetheless.  It's a sound gesture of kindness on my part."  Her face stretched in a smile, but Nuly didn't return with her own.  "I value the assistance of our sergal brethren in expelling the northern threat very much.  There is much appreciation to give to them for their loyalty and spirited...dedication to help preserve our land."

"My thanks is endless, general," Nuly said to her with a claw digging into the strap of one of the donated packs she and Unkli were given, each filled the essentials.  "I'm sorry for the loss of your males and females during your attacks on the army, but I have no doubt that you killed many Shigu.  I was there, watching it."

"Ah, and I have no doubt you participated in such killings of my warriors, is that right?"  Her calm smirk waited for her response.

"Yes, that's right."  Not the first time she had to confess such.  "But don't think I enjoyed fighting against your people.  It was just as difficult as fighting against my own."

"I have my own thoughts on the matter, but I don't feel it's best to voice them.  I dislike discussing causalities, but only our own.  The only thing we can do now is see that the Shigus are drowned with further opposition.  The south will need the strength of all the races to do that.  Chieftain Quesfer hoped for that, and I will see that her vision is made actual regardless of her death."

"I dearly hope that you do.  Leave no trace of Rain's army left."  The time to leave was now, and Nuly stood at attention and gave the Nevrean general a Reono salute.  General Pilamus did the same, letting two fingers on her right hand run across the top of her beak.  With no further words, Nuly and the rest were gone.

They were given three Sugios, two females and the predictable flyer male, but there was no need for him to take to the air as they climbed the Tonzu mountain's rocky heights.  Nuly much desired for the grassy fields or the mud between her toes instead of having pebbles assault her feet, but her's and Unkli's complaints remained unannounced as their guides trekked on in silence.

As their elevation grew, so did the coolness in the air and Unkli's skittishness towards the growing depths below.  She attempted not to see how far she would go if she plunged from the path, but ever now and then her curiosity would find how deep it went.  Nuly could hear her breath quickening, and she could almost hear the chattering of her teeth.  The fear in her eyes was quite evident as she pressed away from the edges that would take her life.

"Just keep to the path," Nuly suggested to her, "and you'll be fine."  At first, she didn't say anything back, taking one more look at the long drop below.

"Times like these I wish I had wings like them," she pointed ahead, "But then again, I'd rather have strong legs to run."  Colder and colder the air kept developing and soon crystals of ice could be seen among the grass and rocks which then began to accumulate in the sergals' fur and the Nevreans' feathers.  The frigid cold did little to affect either of them, but the wind was no help at all.  Both Nuly and Unkli found it was the time for them to don their hoods with the cold biting at them.

Unkli eyes widened with intense dread once she saw they were required to travel over a bridge, her legs stopping in their stride.  It seemed to provide sturdy passage over a large gap in between the rocks, built wholly of wooden and metal nails, but Unkli still stared at it with fear.  The Nevrean guides were the first to try it's strength and they were half-way over before they turned back to see the sergals still standing on the other end.  "Come on!" the maroon-colored male waved them on.

"Let's go, Unkli," Nuly attempted to encourage her.   She slowly took her first step on the wooden planks, and the slightest squeak made her jump back.

"We're too heavy," she reasoned dreadfully.  "We have to find another way, it will break and we'll fall."  She looked at Nuly and she could see she needed a demonstration.  Nuly pushed past her, testing the wood with a careful foot and then another and then another.

"It's fine," Nuly assured her, standing a good few paces from her.  "Come on."  But Unkli quickly shook her head.  Nuly walked towards her, stretching out an open hand.  "Come on, take my hand and let's go.  We'll cross together."  The proposal wasn't rejected out right, but Unkli was quiet with the Nevreans egging her to move forward.  "I won't let go of you.  Please, Unkli."  She came forward, tightly clasping her hand around Nuly's and they began to slowly cross the bridge.

Unkli's other hand gripped the redwood railing as Nuly tugged her along, feeling her claws once again pierce her hide.  Nuly could see it was quite a ways down as did Unkli, but she didn't slow.  The Nevreans provided them with agitated expressions once they had crossed the bridge entirely.  One of the females couldn't help but shake her head in laughter.  "Warriors," the female remarked between breathes, "and she's afraid of a bridge."  The quiver in Unkli's legs would pass once they started on the trail again.

They were then lead to a small settlement of shacks and wooden hovels.  The coats and cloaks of their Nevrean dwellers fluttered enthusiastically in the harsh cold wind.  They look on the passing group with tired eyes, standing stagnate as they went on their way.  There was no curses or objects thrown in the air towards them before they eventually went back to chipping away at the ice on their roads and trails.  Frost could even be seen on the guards' armor, the guides giving them the same salute Nuly had received from their general.

They asked for shelter in a humble hut, taking their rest and eating small strips of meat.  One of the females shook the other to make her stop snoring.  The white noise of Unkli's breath provided Nuly some relaxation before they continued on their path.  There were very few others as they passed the peak of the mountain and descended on the other side.  Nuly's eyes took in the beautiful scene presented before her: the mountainous slopes and grooves of the earth splintering out to the endless green plains.  Such an enthralling sight failed to awestruck Unkli, instead she turned away from it in fear.

Another stop was given before they finally ended their trek from the mountains, Nuly taking her short but required doze as the day turned to evening.  Very little conversation was given between the sergals and Nevreans during these runs and walks, but then, "You sergals talk very little," the male commented, his legs crossed.

"Are we supposed to talk much?" Unkli asked.

"The sergals I've met like to talk, too much in fact.  It's good to see that's not an universal trait to your race."  He sounded sincere, but Nuly believed Unkli took it as an insult.

"I talk when I need to, but I have to ask, since we're talking about traits, do all Nevreans taste the same?"

"Unkli!" Nuly hissed at her.

"It's an honest question," she smiled.

"I'm not sure of that," the black-feathered female started, "but could I ask the same question about how you all taste?"

"I've only tasted southern flesh," Unkli said after giggling lightly.  "I've never tasted northern meat.  I would imagine we taste less gamey."

"Wait," the male then cut in with a confused expression which then turned to one of understanding. "Oh, that's right.  Shigus.  Well, covert Shigus."

"Well, she's the agent," Unkli jutted a thumb at Nuly, "I'm the defector.  She eats southern meat because she has too, but I eat it because I love it's taste."

"So it's a custom to eat your enemies," the brown-feathered female remarked.

"Do you not eat your enemies after every victory?" Unkli asked with interest.

"Not our clan, but other clans have practiced such acts.  The Jukcru clan would cut out the hearts of their captors and eat them to strike fear in their enemies."

"Also," the other female continued the subject, "the Niroc clan, back about a hundred years, would feed on their leaders after a successful coup.  But us, our clan, don't indulge in the dish of our own kind."

"Such a pity," Unkli then said.  "You should, your kind have a very fine taste."

"Maybe so," the female retorted, "but I think I would rather taste a sergal.  They have a lot more meat than us."  Unkli's response to her was a light laugh and an inviting smile, contrary to what Nuly expected.  The Nevreans had presented their own and more conversation was initiated with the result of boastful laughs and friendly leers.

After the group had entered the new terrain of the fields, the foot of the mountains receding in the distance, there was little else to see.  The aerial, called Jukro, took to the skies and hung over them like a predatory animal looking upon it's potential prey.  The others, Nilnam and Ando, speed forward with the sergals following.  Nuly's leg was still considerably sore and healing, but she paid little mind to it's twinges while she kept up with Unkli who was glad to be back on flat ground.

The two had been given weapons, but only blades made of silver and daggers of iron.  Nuly would rather have one of their singing blades that their guides currently carried alongside their firearms.  But these Nevreans were thinking cautiously, least the sergals turn on them and decided to escape in the vast fields.  Nuly planned no such act, knowing this was not their home and they were far from it, but everyday the group drew closer to their destination.

Nuly had hoped there would be no confrontation, no skirmishes in the terrifying openness of the plains, but Jukro called out to them, an ear-piercing screech that echoed through the fields.  He had spotted a threat and the four on the ground could currently see it:  six figures running rapidly and perpendicular toward their intended path.  Too tall for either Agudner or Nevrean, but just the size for a band of sergal mercenaries.  But Nilnam didn't tell them to show their weapons as the group came closer in range.  Nuly nervously put a hand on her sword, readying herself for the seemingly enviable encounter.  But the call to arms wasn't announced or needed as the six passed on by.

"Did you see that?" Nilnam asked laughingly back to the sergals.  "They were thinking about it, they were about to, but they knew."

"You're lucky you have us," Ando then added.  "These bandits don't usually attack Nevreans unless they're looking for a bullet through their brains.  Be sure to remember your good fortune."  And Nuly would.

"Have you ever had sex with a Nevrean?"  Jukro suddenly inquired with humorous vocals.

"No," Unkli responded with a smile.  "You interested with laying with a sergal?"

"It's just a curiosity of mine," he said before drinking from his canteen.  "And you?" he asked Nuly.

"I have not," she replied with a grin.

"Jukro likes to look at the sergal prostitutes," Ando laughed, shoving him lightly with an elbow.  "He would really like to see what they feel like on the inside."  Jukro gave off a light and embarrassed smirk, eyes looking at the canteen in his hands.

"Talyxians too," Nilnam added, further expanding the length of the group's laughter.

"There's nothing wrong with curiosity," Unkli then spoke, her smile remaining strong.  "But you better expect to pay extra for whatever fantasies you wish to engage with a sergal.  Prepare yourself as well because a female can be a tyrant when she's in the mood.  Be careful too because many females like to tear out a male's throat after she's finishes.  That's why I don't have a father."  Nuly laughed again with the females as Jukro's eyes became wide with disbelief.

Unkli would tell him how it's offensive for a male to be on top, how they'll scream while in intercourse, and how they'll more than often beat a male if not enough pleasure is administered.  Nuly attempted to tame her snickering throat, hoping the Nevrean male would not listen to Unkli's lies.

The next day, Nuly had noticed the grass was changing colors after ever rekusu.  From a bold green to lime to yellow until the carpet of grass disappeared to show the underlying dirt and rocks.  With the parting of the cool grass then came the humidity and the mountain range that surrounded the Sailzane desert.  A large fence of brown and gray aged wood ran down the foot of the hills, guards watching them as they moved towards a large gate.  Nuly felt some relief as she saw the glittering armor of a Reono, having not seen such a sight for some time.

"Captain Nilnam Alnan of the twenty-second squadron," Nilnam saluted the Reono guard approaching them.

"Captain Voclow Fridwo," the female greeted.  "Hoping to pass through these gates, I can assume?"

"Yes, we do."

"Where are you going with these northerners?" she waved a hand at them.

"We have military business in Guliatto."

"That's quite a ways to go.  Are you sure these prisoners of yours will survive the heat?"  Nosy one, Nuly thought.

"These sergals are no prisoners," Nilnam informed, "they are of Clan Reono and I am entrusted to  escort them to their commander."

"Hmmm," the female Reono grumbled lightly, fingers squeezing the shaft of her spear.  "You may pass," she tiredly smiled.  "It's a very enjoyable sight to see northerners on our side."

"Do you have any water we can store?" Nilnam then asked.

"Only enough to fill a few cups, but we have to ask how much change can you spar us?"

"Enough to buy every drop."  Nilnam then jangled a small brown sack on her belt that rang with coinage, and the guard smiled widely.

###### ==========================================================

The trek across the Sailzane desert was, for Nuly, regardless of it's oppressive heat, a nostalgic journey.  She felt at home panting heavily as the humidity sapped her energy, and bringing upon her a familiar thirst.  She had to confess she missed the hot sand burning the pads of her feet as the dry warmth absorbed her.  Nilnam, Ando, Jukro, and Unkli on the other hand were not experiencing the same feelings as her.

Jukro could only stand a few moments at a time in the sky, complaining of the sun's heat on his wings and back.  Nilnam shouted at him to take off in the air before she pummeled him and he was quick to do so.  Nilnam's mood was beyond irritated, becoming another victim of the temperature.  Ando instead grew quiet excluding her heavy breathing, her gait slowing after each rekusu.  All three Nevreans wore goggles, optimal protection from the sandy winds while Nuly and Unkli were satisfied with their hoods drawn over their heads.  "I don't think I'm going to live past this, Nuly," Unkli blew out as the group stopped to rest, the heat of the sand beginning to sear through the fabric sheet they had laid upon the ground.

"You'll be fine," Nuly consulted her, "I had to go through this when my family migrated here.  "Ignore the heat, don't focus on it."  She watched her take a long sip from her canteen.  "Take little drinks," she advised quickly, "preserve it until you need it."

"I need it now.  I'll die of thirst."

"You'll die of thirst later if you don't."  Unkli responded with a hiss as she capped her canteen.

Nilnam wasn't content on lingering in one place for long, the heat becoming less sufferable by the moment.  Then as the sun disappeared along with it's heat came the cold nights under the black sky.  Nuly and Unkli endured it by huddling together, and the Nevreans did the same with their backs pressed against one another.  "I better not find you hugging my leg again," Nilnam warned Jukro.

When day came again with the hourly dashes through the heat, Ando began to hum to herself which then turned to lyrics.  "I like to hear the wind under my wings."  Nilnam peered back at her before she returned her eyes forward.  "I like see the greenery grow under my feet," she continued pausing after each stanza.  And then...

"I like to drink in the fertile air," Nilnam added her voice in and waited for Ando to carry on the poem.

"And bring you a grateful night."

"I like to see the children play in the groove."

"I like to feel your feathers upon mine."

"And let our beaks touch so I might know your love," the two started to sing in chorus.

"I like to watch the clouds float through a blue sky."

"I like to ride on my strong mount, both in harmony and in combat."

"And be sure to know which one you face me in."

"I like to feel water bathe my body."

"I like to smell the scent of our home."

"And let me see the color of your eyes as you see mine."  Nuly could appreciate the Nevreans' lyrical bout considering it provided some distraction from the fatigue in her legs and the breathlessness in her lungs.

"I didn't know we were in the presence of performers," Unkli joked at them and they were more than glad to commence a new song.  In the middle of one, the cry of distress from the airborne Jukro came to their ears.  Their speed slowed with their heads turning about to find what threat he had seen.

They rose quick from under their camouflaged sheets, rushing forward with swords drawn and feverish cries exiting their throats.  There was five of them, southern sergal with brown cloaks draped around their thin frames.  They were already at a disadvantage being a distance from their targets.  Nuly and Unkli revealed their own weapons as the Nevrean's showed their pistols, the sandblasted wind becoming loud with the southern sergals' shouts and the pistols' discharge.

Nilnam and Ando had hit all five before Nuly and Unkli could even confront the fighters.  Nuly's blood rage was still in full swing while she watched four bodies lay lifeless in the heated sand while one attempted to crawl away on all fours.  Nilnam took a cautious stroll towards the injured provoker, who quickly looked back to see her closing in on him.  He was small, maybe a dwarf or a child, and as Nilnam carefully came around him, she leveled her pistol at his head.  She spoke something to him, something harsh and too low to hear.  The bandit leveled his head to look at her before the trigger was pulled and the gun blasted.  He began to leak red into the sand just like his friends were doing.  Their bodies were searched, a few rations taken with a couple of canteens to boot.  They left the remains for the scavengers.

Finally, after several days in the tyranny of the searing Sailzane desert, they came to the town of Gucaillo.  Dwellings crafted from stone and wood stood amongst the sandy winds and harsh sun, Reono banners whipping in the air.  The guards gave them no trouble when they asked for passage, only blank stares.  The training grounds were further east of the town, but Nuly wanted to go more northwest.

A few of the streets were cobblestone once they drew into the town more, others looking their way in silence.  Nuly could smell bread being baked, watching a male's hands masterfully weave a basket as his cub watched him and attempted to craft his own basket.  One more turn and it was the third house on the left.  It was nothing more than a small two story dwelling made of wood.  She scratched at the wooden door with no answer given, but she tried again.  No one was here and the door was locked, but Nuly wasn't too surprised.

She wanted to go in and see it's bare interior again, feel it's shaded air with mismatched carpets covering the floor.  She wanted to go up the stone stairs to her room where she might rest on her fur stuffed mattress once more.  She wanted to smell their scent in there, take it in, and remember.  But no one was here right now, not at this hour.  They were working, advertising themselves as labors for anything that needed to be pulled, picked up, or delivered.

"Are we waiting for someone?" Nilnam asked with her arms folded around her chest.

"I know someone here," Nuly partially confessed, "but we're here now.  You don't have to stay with us any longer."

"Not until we speak with your general, then we can leave."  Nuly provided a low sigh, her palm parting with the door's flat surface.  Would they be in the markets or at one of the gates to the town, asking drivers if they needed someone to help unload their cargo?  She wanted to see both of them, speak with them together, but she couldn't tell what streets they would be on or even if they would be together.  She wanted to see them just one more time before she submitted herself to the dealings of the Reono army.  They then went east to find another familiar face.

The training grounds were filled with the stamping feet and heavy grunts of recruits.  Most were Nuly's and Unkli's age, but there were also the older and younger ones mixing themselves in with them.  Nuly saluted the guard at her post, saying, "I'm looking for Captain Iskoali."

"And who's looking for him?"

"I'm Sao of the fourteen squadron.  I was recruited here a few months ago and I need to see the Captain.  I have urgent news for him."

"How urgent?"

"Urgent enough to where I can't tell anyone else but him."  Regardless of the confused expression on her face, the guard strolled over to the large tent where Nuly's journey had began.  It didn't take long for the guard to emerge with Iskoali moving past her to see his returned recruit.  His eyes grew wide once he saw her, the hood of her cloak pulled back to show her pleased expression.

"Recruit Sao," he stated gladly with almost a smile, something Nuly did not expect at all, "what business do you have coming here?  I would think you would be on the front."

"I was, Captain, but times have lead me here and for reasons I can't speak freely of.  Can we talk in your tent?"

"Of course," he said, taking a quick glance at her company before turning towards the commander's tent.

"Uh, sir," the guard spoke suddenly, obstructing the path of the Nevreans and Unkli with her spear.  "What about these four?"  Iskoali took another look at the unknowns before his eyes looked to Nuly again.

"They can be trusted," Nuly assured him and he allowed them to pass through.  The tent provided the same shade the last time she was here, nude before their analyzing eyes and a nervous sickness in her stomach that turned to excitement the moment they offered her the choice.

Yurgie was there too, seeming just as pleased to see Nuly, but still offering the same question of why see wasn't on the front.  Their expressions turned less enthusiastic once Nuly began to tell them what happened on the front, in the presence of their enemy while Unkli and the Nevreans stood behind her.  She only relented the barest of the details.

"It appears that you've had an interesting first experience on the battlefield, Recruit Sao," Yurgie commented as she sat in her chair.  "But it's very sad to hear your mission had went uncompleted."  Her vocals were drained of any joy, and Nuly knew she was very disappointed by her report.

"But it's good to see that you lived to tell us such," Iskoali then spoke up, hands pressed together as his arms rested on his knees.  "I imagine that General Suklin will be just as happy to see you alive."

"Wait," Nilnam interrupted.  "This isn't your general?" she pointed at the one behind the desk.

"No," Nuly answered her, "General Suklin is at Camp Hitilano, a day's worth of rekusus away and I don't know the exact paths we would have to take to get there."

"You'll need a guide," Iskoali stated bluntly.  "Someone from the camp.  I'll be sure to send someone immediately to inform them."

Nilnam and Ando rolled their eyes.  "Excellent," Nilnam said with heavy sarcasm.  "A few more days in the desert.  How long will this take?" she asked Iskoali.

"Should be just a few days, but you've done your part by guiding our recruit to us.  You should have your leave now."

"Like I said to your recruit, we cannot leave until we speak with General Suklin personally.  Until then, we stick with her."

"Then you will be accompanying her into the desert again," Yurgie said.

"Just point us in the direction we should be going and we'll get there."

"Not without a personal guide from the camp," Iskoali started up again.  "No one gets through without one."  Nilnam grumbled lightly as she folded her arms around her chest again, visibly not too pleased by the captain's news.

"And what about you?" Yurgie then designated Unkli from the group.  "You're the Shigu defector, yes?"  Unkli then nodded without speaking a word.

Yurgie's eyes became alight with interest as she looked at her.  "Ah, so it's not at a complete loss then.  We can at least salvage another trooper from this venture.  General Suklin will be wanting to see you as well," she smiled.

"Can I ask what will happen to me once we are through with this...ordeal?" Unkli asked.  "Will I be forced to join your clan?"

"That is something I cannot say for sure," Yurgie responded as she scratched at the side of her jaw.  "If you show your generosity enough, I believe they'll allow you to go about your way, as long as you don't hold yourself to be one of Clan Shigu."

"Of course not," Unkli assured her.  "My loyalties no longer belong to Clan Shigu."  That statement obviously satisfied Yurgie wholesomely.

###### ===========================================================

Strips of jerky and cold meat with water was given to Nuly and Unkli as they sat in their portion of the tent.  Obviously, the Nevreans waited outside, consuming their own food and drink.  Nuly expected for their guide to arrive very soon, maybe in the early morning, but the thought of her confrontation with General Suklin was still a nervous one in her head.

She found the right opportunity to ask permission to leave the camp from Yurgie, asking for a moment to see her parents again.  Thankfully for her, Yurgie allowed such, feeling that after her mission she deserved it.  But the Nevreans were always there, behind and beside them.  It was early evening, and as Nuly's scratched at the door again, she hoped at least one of them would be there cooking the evening meal.

"Who's there?" a masculine voice growled inside the dwelling.  Nuly knew either he volunteered for the nightly duty of cooking or his mate had forced him to do such.  She was more inclined to believe the latter.

"It's your daughter," she smilingly responded.

"That's not funny, Doolna," he hissed.  "Not funny."  She could hear the locks on the door unhinge and rattle, the door opening with her father holding a small dagger in his left hand.  A gasping clutter of vocals immediately shot out of his maw the instance he saw her, eyes threatening to fall out of his head.  "Nuly," he first said softly.  "Nuly!" he then grabbed at her, letting the dagger fall to the ground with a clatter.  His muscles were hard bunches under his black fur with the scent of the day's work.  She made sure her embrace was just as strong as his.

When he finally parted, his eyes now turned less lovingly towards Nuly's company before he returned them to her.  "You're back," he stated with his hands gripped tightly on her shoulders, "does that mean the war is over?  Or have the waves of Shigu pushed you all the way back here?"  His stare was intense as he waited for her answer.

"Neither," she replied.  "I'm back for a short time, I'll be gone the next day.  I have to appear before my general."

"Then come in," he invited.  "But I'm not sure about your friends," he said while leering at them.

"Please, father.  They're friends, my friends."  And without any more protest, he motioned for them to enter as he picked up his dagger from the floor.

"You will surely make your mother shed all her fur once she sees you," he told her as he closed and locked the door.  "I never thought all these weeks would feel so long because of your absence."

"Neither did I."

"Ah, don't joke with me like that," he turned to her, asking for them to take seats on the floor and in the few chairs shattered about the room.  "I know you enjoyed the time away from us, but, I have to ask, what stories have you gained through your time in the blood crops?"

"It's something I can't say openly," she confessed to him.  "Nothing I can say to civilian ears."

"Well, civilian ears, yes, but these are your father's ears," he said as he flicked at them, but Nuly shook her head.

"No, father.  I can't say anything."

"Not even a hint?"

"Only this then," she relented.  "Blood has been spilled, a lot actually, but that is all I can say."

He grumbled gently.  "If only that little could satisfy my curiosity," he grinned.  "A drink, would any of you like a drink?"  Everyone refused as he retrieved a cup and filled it from a container sitting in a corner of the room.

"Have you and mother been fending well for yourselves?" Nuly asked as she watched him lap from his cup.

"One less stomach to fill, one less stream of pay."  He looked at the light piercing through the cracks of a shut window, listening to the noises outside.  "Very little has changed on the outside, but your mother and I have become even more haunted by not knowing where you are.  Here, we can watch you, know the dangers, try to protect you.  But out there," he waved a hand at the window, "we can only pray.  You never told me why you've come back.  Oh, shit!"  He suddenly took notice to the pot hanging over the hot ambers in the fireplace, hurryingly stirring the boiling contents of meats and broth.  "Why do you have to stand before your general?  Did you disobey an order?"  He turned to peer over his shoulder.

"No," was all Nuly could say.

"Then it's for a good reason then?"

"I don't know.  I can only say...I'm back and I'm required to seek their audience."  She could understand her father's unseen frustration, hear his unsaid fears.  "But I wanted to say whatever happens, I'll be there to help."  He targeted her again, eyes showing bolder now.

"Sounds like something bad happened."

"No, it's just that thoughts of you and mother kept me alive during my time in the battlefield.  That time has given me a greater appreciation of you."  She smiled and he smiled back at her.  Few words were exchanged before Doolna came knocking, clad in a brown skirt and headdress over her blue fur.  Nuly rose to greet her and she responded with a lifting hold that hauled her feet off the ground.  It appeared as if she was caught between crying and laughing vocals as she tucked Nuly's head under her's.

"I dreamt about them delivering you back home in pieces," her mother had told them with grin.  "They gave me your head first."  She lapped at her hot soup hungrily.  "They told me it would be another ten weeks before they would find and send your arms and legs.  I thought that I could stitch you up and you would be better again."  She giggled nervously.

"Well, it's good that I came back in one piece then," Nuly attempted to make her laugh seem less awkward.

"What about your training?" she asked Nuly with an overly excited smile.

"Oh, it was excellent.  My teacher was...extremely honed."

"Then show me," her mother lifted from her chair and positioned herself on an open space on their floor.

"You just ate, you know," Nuly reasoned.  "Are you sure?  I don't want you to vomit on me."

"Just a few rounds."  Five rounds to be exact, the first two being playful tests of her mother's.  The last three were more serious bouts that had them both on the ground and twisting in each other's grip.  Nuly won every one of them, utilizing the lessons from Aduli and her Nevrean teacher.  She could see a few coins change hands between Ando and Jukro after the last rounds, feeling her heart pump with intensity.  "Who taught you?" her mother then asked, accepting her daughter's assisting hand to help her from the floor.

"Nevrean," Nuly only answered and her mother then glanced at the ones watching them on the other side of the room.

"Those?"

"No, another one."

"Ah, so they're your personal guards," she smirked with Nilnam throwing her a confused look.  "Squad leader already?  Captain?"

Nuly again smiled.  "I'm still only a spearlancer, but maybe I'll receive a promotion once I see the general."

"And hopefully an impressive pay sum," her father added in.

"And who is she?" Nuly saw her mother point at Unkli sitting silently in her chair.

"That's another friend.  She has helped me more times than I have helped her."

"Ah," her mother glared at her relaxingly, "what's your name?"

"Unkli Aplun," she stated.  "You have raised a fine warrior and I'm overflowing with gratefulness to have met her."  Nuly didn't know if she was telling one of her jokes again, but her parents took it as an actual sentiment.  Her mother gave her and the Nevreans a Clan Reono salute and the Nevreans returned the gesture, Unkli nearly covering her left eye, but had decided on just using the Reono salute.  Night quickly came over the town before Nuly reluctantly gave her farewell again to her parents.  She would promise to return whenever she was given the chance.  Maybe they were just as uncertain about her promise as she was, but she relished that image of them together in the frame of their home's door watching her leave.

"You like to play coy, don't you?" Unkli whispered to her inside their tent later that night.

"What do you mean?"

"Keeping everyone in the dark about what we've done, together."

"It's not something anyone needs to know about.  Not now."  She could see Unkli's eyes watching her as they both laid on their pallets in the darkness.

"Are you ashamed of it?"  The question shocked Nuly, and might have visibly made her twitch.

"No," she harshly said.  "I couldn't be ashamed.  I would never be, but for now, we stay quiet.  Alright?"

She saw her head nod softly.  "For now."

###### ==============================================================

Their guide wasn't Wol, but he served the same purpose as he did.  They arrived at the edge of Camp Hilitolo the next day, blue light flicking in their guide's hand.  Iskoali had once again accompanied Nuly, his stone gaze remaining strong.  Nilnam and the others had an issue with relieving their weapons to the guards, but they eventually agreed to relent them.

Instead of General Suklin's office, they were brought to a different room.  A large podium stood at the opposite wall before a bare floor and a few rows of empty chairs.  There in the middle, upon the highest standing podium was General Suklin, flanked by a Nevrean to her left and an aged sergal to her right as a brown-furred scribe sat off on a stool near them.  Each watched them as they approached, no smiles or greeting nods given their way.  Everyone saluted the three in chorus.

"Recruit Sao," General began, "a positive sight to see you before us today.  I trust you have the same feelings?"

"Yes, ma'am!" Nuly boasted.

"Good.  There is very much to discuss today.  Every little detail we have to know.  Everything that happened we are to be told.  Do you understand?"

"Yes, ma'am!"  The general's eyes then scanned the party around her.

"I see that you've brought much company as well, and Captain Iskoali."

The sergal saluted her again.  "Just another member of the escort party."

"As I see, and the Nevreans," she focused on them now.  "What business do you have with us?"

"Ma'am, we are of Clan Sugio and we were ordered to accompany this trooper and her associate to you, General Suklin," Nilnam spoke up.

"Then consider your order complete, soldier.  You've done well."  Ando and Jukro seemed ready to leave before..."But before I allow you to go, we need to know some facts about how you came upon one of our own."

"We only know the basic facts, ma'am.  We weren't there when they were found.  We were told they were captured on the Forga front and had announced they were Reono.  The rest, we were not told."

"And you hail from Clan Sugio?"

"Yes, ma'am.  Defenders of southern land."

"And your general?"

"General Pilamus Snays."

"She has our thanks and appreciation then.  You may leave now."  Nilnam, Ando, and Jukro found the exit quickly, but Jukro was sure to give a quick nod towards the sergals before disappearing out the door.

"Captain Iskoali, your presence is not needed either.  You may go."  With one more salute and an emotionless glance, he was gone as well.  Now, only Nuly and Unkli stood before the three.

"And what's your name?"  The general's cold, unblinking eyes then found Unkli.

"Unkli Aplun, ma'am," she stated politely.

"And what are to our recruit?"  Unkli gave Nuly one simple glance before returning it to the general.

"I am a defector, a former spearlancer of Clan Shigu's army."  General Suklin peered at her two assistants before calling for the guards.

"Take her outside for the moment until I call for her."  Two armed guards came around her and left to have Nuly stand alone before the general.

"Speak clearly, recruit Sao," the general advised her.  "Start from the beginning.  Tell us all you know."  And she did, all of it, from the beginning with her insertion to the end when she was held captive by the Nevreans.  That took long moments, and many times the three would ask a question and she would have to retell a certain part over and over again.  Every detail was put into scrutiny and Nuly was sure to provide them with what they asked to know.  When it came to the fictional bits about Unkli, she only said what she and her discussed in that small room a few days back.  The scribe was content on writing every fragment and word down on paper.  When they seemed satisfied, they then asked to see Unkli.

Nuly could only glance at Unkli as she was brought into the room once again, but she relented to turn her head.  The same thoughts and images ran through her head as she waited, pacing around the small windowless room she was confined in.  Long moments went by in silence, Nuly now sitting on the floor and away from the door.  Would they actually punish her for this failure, Nuly asked herself.  To them, was that just as consequential as treachery?  The anxiety boiling in her stomach was biting away at her patience.

Nuly and Unkli attempted to assassinate General Rain together, but unfortunately were unable to when they were attacked by an unseen force.  They then found escape in the nearby forest and were then detained by a group of Nevreans.  Unkli had some trouble swallowing down the parts about her actions against her General when they were formulating their story back so many rekusus in the mountains.  "It's just words," Nuly said to her, and she was then more willing.  Sleeping now with her head on her knees, Nuly quickly awoke at the sound of the door, the guards calling for her to stand before General Suklin once more.

###### ==============================================================

There would be no hanging, beheading, ritualistic throat-cutting, or torture waiting for them in the darkness of a cell.  Instead, what General Suklin and the rest of her posse had were a few criticisms for her actions during her assignment.  While they commended her on her commitment to her Shigu identity during the mission and overall remembrance of her duty, they also thought she could have been more forceful in her approach towards General Rain.  Instead of waiting for the right moment, they said, she should have created the instance and then struck.  Nuly didn't voice her disagreements, allowing them to tell her her mistakes until they provided what her future was.

"We feel that a leave of absence is much needed," General Suklin told her.  "Considering the length you have been gone and the trials you have been through, it would be very appropriate for you to take it."

"Yes, ma'am."  Nuly could feel a overwhelming sense of relief erupt within her, but...  "What about Unkli?"

"Who?"

"The defector.  What will happen to her?"  The general threw her an odd glance before answering.

"She is none of our concern and what she decides will determine her own fate.  She shows no interest in joining our ranks, so we will send her off with you back to Galliano as an adopted citizen.  There, she will have to fend herself."  Nuly could accept that.  Hell, she thought, it was better than anything she could have forecasted.  She was sure to thank them, attempting to subdue her smile.

Nuly would later find that Unkli was pressed to reveal much information about her upbringing as a Shigu soldier.  She had no problem providing them with such, even though a few tidbits could have been considered exaggerated or completely fabricated.  "They wanted to know," Unkli said to Nuly with a smile, "but I couldn't tell them the entire truth, could I?"

###### ==============================================================

The sandy breeze felt exceptionally wonderful to Nuly as she, Unkli, and their guide sprinted through the desert back home.  She half-expected the guide to kill them in the middle of their journey, the general tying up the loose ends regardless of the fact that Nuly reaffirmed her oath of secrecy to her before they parted.  But no such occurrence happened as the guide left them on the outskirts of the town, the sun low in the heated sky.

"So," Nuly looked to Unkli, smiling, "how does it feel to be a refugee?"

"That's not a very funny joke," she retorted, scanning the distance towards the barren horizon.  "Your general seemed less unforgiving than you spoke of."

"Indeed, but I'm still wary."

"Of what?"

"Anything.  Something my teacher told me.  Always be wary,"  she spoke calmly and Unkli nodded.  "So," she sighed, "where will you be going now?"

"Going?" she acted surprised by her inquiry.  "That's a better joke, but not much funnier.  I can't exactly go back without forfeiting the blessings I have been given, partly thanks to you."

"Again, I'm sorry for that."

"No, I'm talking about the blessings, thank you for them," Unkli said sincerely.

"Oh...you're welcome."

"But now, I'm not sure.  Maybe I'll sleep on the streets for awhile, make what I can from a few patrons who are looking for some pleasure."

"If that's your way of asking for somewhere to stay, then you can stay with me and my family."  She couldn't be for sure if she was being completely serious.

"It was my way of telling a good joke, but I'll accept your kind offer," she grinned and Nuly showed her own.

Again, her mother's and father's eyes alight with joy once Nuly had arrived.  Her mother happily welcomed Unkli to the household with her father stating with a grumble, "at least she's northern."  They had no idea the extent of their relationship, but Nuly found it was unnecessary to reveal such.  She had believed all Unkli's fondness of her had been evaporated.  But that night, with her on the floor and Unkli in her bed, she learned she was wrong.

"Come on," Unkli invited her, moving the sheets for Nuly.  "This is your bed too."  Nuly was cautious, slipping between the sheets to feel Unkli's warmth in them.  She tried to remain separate from her, but Unkli wouldn't allow it as her arms drew her closer and tighter.  Nuly cold feel the vibration of her purring growl as she nuzzled her head on the side of her own.  Then came the heavy panting, the heat, and wet hunger.  "Tonight, I'm going to call you Luka," Unkli whispered with a smile.

Then came Nuly's mother peering inward, and they separated in a rush.  Nuly could see her through the crack in the entryway, everyone silent.

"Are you all okay?" she asked.

"Yes, we're fine," Nuly responded on the bed with her breath quivering and Unkli kneeling on the floor before her.  For a moment, they stared at one another, the silence almost unbearable.

"Keep yourselves quiet.  You two aren't the most...muted."  Nuly and Unkli nodded before she closed the door.  Unkli had no trouble getting right back to it where they left off, but they were sure to a little more subtle as they continued.  Nuly would awake relaxed the next morning, but her confession was not much needed after her mother had already informed her father.

"Guess you have developed a yearning for the touch of a sister while you were gone," her father smiled before her mother asked...

"What about cubs?"

During that day, she found herself looking west, feeling drawn to head to a town somewhere beyond the horizon.  She was planning to do so soon, hoping to find a friend she hadn't seen or talked to for some time now.  She had some stories to tell her.  She turned back to find Unkli waiting for her, ready to attack the day's work.  Nuly was surprised by her almost excited willingness to assist them in their labor, stating she rather not become soft like her.

> THE END.
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