Chapter Ten

The Leothra turned around and stared at her. “‘Whose you?” The gruff voice asked, clearly not belonging to Cephas. “You made me lose my prey!” He flicked his tail to where an impala leaped gracefully away.

          “I-I’m sorry...” Chiara stammered, stunned. It wasn’t him. She had thought so much it was but now all her hopes were dashed.

          “Well?”

          “Oh, I’m Chiara. Princess Chiara,” she looked at him.

          The Leothra’s eyes widened. “We thought you were dead!” He bowed in an elegant manner. “Princess Chiara, you’ve come home! You are the last heir to have survived of the Leothra-that means that now you’re chief!”

          Chiara blinked. “What?”

          “Don’t you know?” His gaze turned sad. “Your father is most likely dead. Same with most of the Leothra.” He growled. “We’re going to take revenge on the dragons someday, just wait. A patrol of five Leothra managed to attack and kill one that was perched, not expecting them. A great victory for the Leothra. Teach them not to mess with us.”

          “Chief Warrick *isn’t* dead.” Chiara responded firmly. “And what do you mean ‘we’? Who are you? Are there more of you out here? Why? What happened? Were you separated from the rest of the leap when the fire happened?”

          “Oh I’m Viorel. Also we are the only Leothra left. We have had to hide, most of us underground and the ones who don’t fit in small hiding places we have found amongst the jungle.” Viorel answered with a bittersweet pride. “Our group may be small but we are rebuilding it and soon the dragons will pay and rue the day they ever set wing here.”

          “Viorel-“ Chiara began, “You were the ones left behind by us. The Leothra is on its way to Pegasus territory. We-Chief Warrick and many others-thought you were all dead.”

          Viorel looked at her sharply. “Then does that mean Tal and Flen are okay?”

          “Tal is,” Chiara said. “Isn’t Flen with you?”

          A look of horror filled Viorel’s eyes and Chiara shared it. “No! He hasn’t been seen anywhere!”

          “Oh no,” Chiara whispered. She knew it was unlikely he was alive. Same with many of the missing Leothra. But to realize after gaining renewed hope that the Leothra might have all survived was as if he died all over again. *Flen is-or was-so sweet and kind. How dare the dragons do anything to him?*

          Viorel turned away for a moment and sighed. Chiara stood in the center of the small clearing, feeling awkward. She shuffled her paws as Viorel looked back at her. “Well... Anyways, I’ll take you to where we have been staying.

          “Where is it exactly?” Chiara asked. Viorel had said it was underground but she had never known of any caves or anything in particular of that sort. Or that the Leothra had access to it.

          “Follow me and I’ll show you,” Viorel said. With that he lifted off into the air, with Chiara following. She was confused for a moment of why he stayed close to the ground. Then she heard the not far off roar of a dragon. *Oh,* she thought. *I guess it would just make larger targets of us to fly above the tree line.*

          They glided beneath the tree tops for not that long. The flight was so much shorter than what Chiara had expected that it surprised her.

          Viorel landed in front of a patch of jungle that hadn’t been burned all the way through. The trees in that area had many if not most or all of their leaves. Gusts of wind blew the leaves back and forth, occasionally knocking deadened and black ones from the trees.

          Viorel ducked beneath a branch into a crevice under the rock. “It was Ames’s idea to hide here apparently,” Viorel began saying as Chiara squeezed her way through. “He and Cephas would go in there and play around, pleased with the idea that no one would know how to find them.”

          Chiara looked up. “Is Cephas here?” she asked hopefully.

          Viorel looked at her and Chiara wished she hadn’t seen the sadness in his gaze. “Sorry, but no. We don’t know where he is, along with many other Leothra.”

          *Well at least I know where Ames and Cephas have gone all these years when I couldn’t find him,* Chiara thought, trying to cover up her fear and grief. *I wonder how they found out about it when no one else has in who knows how long.*

          Viorel continued on and Chiara flattened her fur as she followed. The roof rose so it was no longer pressed against her back and she raised her head to see-or rather hear and smell-that the cavern was stuffed full of Leothra. It wasn’t particularly large in size, but was enough to fit the small population of her leap. The intensitiy of the scent of all of the Leothra might as well have punched her in the nose. She couldn’t help to not curl her jaws in disgust.

          Viorel continued talking to her. “You know, we found three Leothra today that had escaped the dragon’s wrath, and now you too. A new record!” He let out a half hearted chuckle and spun to face the majority of the Leothra in the cavern. “Princess Chiara has returned!” Viorel shouted, his wings spread wide as if to present her to the crowd.

          Even in the poor lighting conditions, Chiara could feel the eyes of hundreds land on her. She shrank in her pelt, wishing she could disappear at that moment, or be someone else.

          Chiara felt she should say something but she had no clue what. “H-hi,” she said softly. Chiara was mildly surprised how her voice cracked as if she hadn’t used it in years.

          Cheers greeted her. Leothra called out her name in joy and the group became rambunctious. Chiara could make out some shouts from amongst them.

          “The heir has returned!”

          “A new record! Less and less Leothra dead as we thought! Take that, dragons!”

          “Chief Chiara!”

          The last comment from the uproar shocked Chiara most of all. *Chief? No, I’m not their chief! No way! Never in a century!*

          “I’m not your leader!” She tried to yell. “Chief Warrick is!”

          Most of the Leothra if they heard her ignored her. The ones that did and responded just claimed that her father was dead. That she was the last heir and finally they would have a real leader once again.

          Chiara whipped to Viorel with a pleasing look in her eyes. “Tell them! Tell them I’m not chief! Chief Warrick is alive!”

          Viorel blinked at her and nodded. “Listen!” Viorel commanded.

          Some of the Leothra hushed but still many more kept on. Viorel stamped his feet against the muddy rock slab beneath him. “QUIET!” he roared at the top of his voice, so loud that it cracked. Not long after all stopped except for the quiet mumur of whispering. Viorel took a deep breath. “Chief Warrick is alive. Chiara said so herself.” With that, to Chiara’s dismay, he stepped back behind her and motioned for her to talk.

          *No,* she panicked. Chiara stood silent, not knowing what to say and not wanting to talk.”Umm...” she stalled, nervous. “Uh, Chief Warrick *is* indeed alive. Yeah.” She partly covered herself with her wings, wishing she could hide.

          Viorel spoke up through the awkward silence, clearing his throat. “Er, um, I think they wanted to hear where he is, not confirmation that he is alive.”

          “Oh,” Chiara said. “Uh...,” she hadn’t known exactly where they were when she left the rest of the Leothra. She just knew how to get back.

          “He’s in the plains, on the way to Pegasus territory!” a voice shouted. Chiara flicked her ears toward it, recognizing it was Wrisn. *But she almost never speaks!* Chiara could tell that she was not the only one alarmed by the outburst from one of the quietest Leothra she ever knew.

          “Is this true?” Questioned a maroon Leothra.

          Chiara nodded stiffly.

          “Then let’s go!” Shouted another voice. It was clear most of the leap agreed.