Today, my morning has already begun to start horribly; the air from inside the dinner room is dry, and the smell of fumes that come from the torches lighting up the place rises up the tension of us three. Even if we sit together, with Lagravis at the extreme end of the table, I've always wondered why is it so long; our family only consists of three lions, separated by the table's length.
“With all of this ‘teamwork’ between the crocodiles and the wolves, I'm afraid that Crominus’ help might be a ruse. He barely has any warriors left, and all of these reptiles change their mind so… so quickly! It's like they don't have minds of their own!”
Lavertus lets out a deep breath, as his eyes point down to his breakfast. He seems to take his time to think, before gulping down the food inside his mouth.
Dad continues: “I don't think I'm able to trust the Crocodile Tribe anymore. One moment they claim themselves to be pacifists, and the other they start planning the downfall of Chima!”, he shouted in frustration, “Besides the participation of Wilhurt, Cruz sent one of his blind followers to endanger my son. Absolutely disgusting!”
My uncle lifts his glass of water and slowly sips the liquid inside of it; his paw shakes ever so slightly. When he places the cup back on top of the table, he sighs. I've never seen his body this closed before... almost as if he's mourning. Lavertus' eyes have lost their glimmer, pondering away about...
“Brother… Maybe you're jumping to conclusions. Crominus, well—”, Lavertus' voice dampens in hesitation, “He's a hard working father, just like you. Haven't you heard that he's holding his tribe and family together all by himself?”
Lagravis frowns. His right hand, holding a fork, stiffens, as he holds the utensil with so much strength that veins start to bulge from the back of the paw up until his entire right arm. Not only that, but his sickly pale face begins to be marked with veins and wrinkles too.
“What about his wife Crunket? Isn't she supposed to help him too? She's the queen, after all!”
Lavertus almost jumps from his chair, mouth agape. His brother only noticed the reaction seconds later. They both stare at eachother without uttering a single word. My food is starting to taste stale after all this time, and they have still yet to speak. Shocked, my uncle closes his lips.
The walls around me begin to deepen themselves into the horizon; the table, my breakfeast, the utensils, blend in with everything else, I'm unable to discern what's in front of me. Thoughts rampage in my mind; crocodiles hunted me down, but what about Cragger, who tried protecting me from Wilhurt, or Crug, even? My Dad doesn't make sense! Nothing makes sense at all!
I mutter, “Dad… Crug saved me from Cruz once. If it weren't for him, I would've died in a bath of my own blood. He's a good crocodile! What about Cragger?”
Lagravis' eyes grow and shrink in a flash. He gazes at me with frowning beanbrowns. “My dear son. Listen to me— you are a cub inside this world filled with wicked, vile creatures, who will kill you whenever given the chance. With only nine years of age, you might be too young to understand, but you are currently a target of the crocodiles. Do not let your guard down, or you will be murdered! This is real life, the world we live in, especially those of royal blood. Besides, Crug might be a Chi eater; that body of his is... unnaturally muscular! Don't you know how dangerous Chi eaters can be?"
Those harsh words start to echo in my mind; I hesitate to even reply— father, what do you mean, a 'target'? I got in contact with these vile creatures myself, I know what they are! But— to let my guard down, to be killed… The reality of a prince isn't easy… I can't go on forever fearing for my own life! Tears try to flee out of my eyes, but I blink them away, even though it hurts, almost like a burning sensation. Out of nowhere, something gently pinched my toes; it's my uncle trying to calm me down by holding me. I think he noticed...
Dad puts the final piece of food from his plate into his mouth. After he swallows it, he places the utensils on top of his plate, ordering Longtooth to clean it. The king sighs, his hands trembling out of control.
"Laval, please forgive me for stressing you this early. It's— It's hard to explain... Just... Keep in mind that Rawzom sent me an urgent request for help. I can't leave you alone, so you will come with us."
Dad's big tank is almost ready to leave the lion temple. Lennox has already calibrated the vehicle's tracks. It's huge. This saved me when I got chased by wolves with Cragger and Dom. No matter how much Lennox cleans and paints that machine, I can still smell the faint and sharp scent of blood. That smell has stained the forehead of this vehicle's meticulously built lion head; a ferocious and violent lion, for one.
I stop behind the stationary tank, and see that it's open, filled at the back with Chi, food, weapons, and other things we might need. In front of me, I see a long case, a suspiciously long one. It's almost opening, moving a bit by itself, but it then stops itself in a flash.
Eris taps my shoulder. She grins before giving me a hug, something I was needing for a while. I press my arms around her, with all of the strength I can muster.
"We're going to the Raven Village!", she says in excitement, "I can't wait to meet the prince! You know, the Raven Tribe is making history right now, they're building their entire kingdom from the ground up."
As I hold her hand, the reoccurring, haunting sensation comes to strangle me, again and again. It makes me hesitate; what if something bad happens on our way there? Maybe my head is overthinking, but what if we fall in an ambush? What if—
She raises her eyebrow, it's like she read my mind. In reaction, I touch my fingers on themselves and feel the sweat sprouting from the skin. Time is making me crumble down into pieces; ever since... that day, I keep getting hurting more and more. Even the pain of my scar lingers. But... if I continue the silence, Eris might become worried...
"That's really interesting.. It is...", I turn my head to see if my Dad has come, but he's nowhere to be found, "Quite exciting... Yes..."
"I know how you feel, Laval", she sighs, "I... I couldn't believe my eyes. Eglor lost his arm trying to save him, my brother."
"I'm—", my eyes begin to water, and my voice trembles, "I'm sorry..."
How pathetic of me, these were the only words I could say! I was so engulfed in my own thoughts that he future of those eagles didn't even crossed my mind. And to believe that Crawley— Argh! Eris might never know the truth... Would she be able to?...
Eris begins to weep with the faintest of voices, but sniffs in some air and calms herself.
A few seconds later, Lennox returns with Lagravis and Longtooth. We five hop on the tank, and Leonidas opens the Lion Temple's gate for us to leave.
In the middle of the Desert Canyon, dull colors of tan and orange would've mixed together, but during nighttime, they look all the same. Our trip took longer than we expected, as we had to stop a few times to rest; we're not adapted to this kind of harsh climate. Besides the tall, almost mountain-like natural stone structures, there's the Raven Village, closed off to outsiders by a big wall. Lots of tiny Raven jets fly around atop the city, almost as if they're monitoring the place.
The further we drive inside of the Raven Village, the more I find myself seeing desolate ravens ravaged by disease, fighting for their lives with claws and beaks, beating each other on the streets. Some of them are sitting on the ground, begging, and others are left to die. Corpses lie on the sidewalk; their putrid stench is impossible to ignore. Both dried and moist bird feces are scattered around the place. I pinch my nostrils to not smell in alll of the unfortunate filth; I might fall ill. This... is a disaster! These animals seem to have been abandoned by their king! Back in my home tribe, the lions and lionesses don't... die... in the streets—
My heart sinks.
Somebody touched me.
"Scaredy cat!", a childishly familiar voice giggles.
It's Cragger.
No one has seen him... yet; Eris is too focused on telling Raven lore to my Dad; Longtooth keeps an eye on the birds around us; Lennox is driving us further to the inside of the village. But at any moment, someone will find out about his presence. He came here... from inside of that suspicious case! I knew there was something wrong with it!
Cragger pulls me closer by the collar. What if Dad sees him doing something reckless again? How would he even react? The mere thought about the countless consequences a prank like this could have crushes my mind.
He points at something far away, but my short breath makes slows me down while trying to turn my head around.
"Laval, look at him... I think he's sad", my friend whispers, as his finger leads my eye to the sight of a raven.
He, the miserable bird, sits still on the sidewalk, covered in ripped, stained clothes. His long hood covers his face. There's a doll within his grasp, one made out of hay; part of it appears to be damp by mud. He notices us, but barely lifts his face, instead choosing to remain still. The bird clenches the doll harder.
I turn my head back— Oh no, Cragger isn't here— he ran after that raven! No— he has taken Cragger's hands... he's pushing him inside of a dark alley! Cragger, no! What am I going to do now?
I tried running forward, but something kept me still. Dad had gripped his hand on my arm. My breath comes back in a sudden, its damp air goes from my mouth into the lungs.
"Laval? You're not running away anytime soon. What are you--"
"Cragger got kidnapped!"
The worst thoughts crossed my mind— images of ravens pecking my friend... with knives in their hand, cackling at his suffering... Their faces start to fade, and raven bodies with Crawley and Cruz' faces jump on Cragger's fuzzy silhouette. A burst of adrenaline rushes in me— We have to rescue Cragger! I don't want him to... go through the same fate—
I shiver.
Dad jumps onto the steering wheel; the vehicle turns abruptly to the alleyway Cragger got pulled into. Stones break as the tank dashes forward. The tracks roar down the street. Ravens rush to the safety of their homes. I crawl into a ball, hiding myself behind Eris. Night has fallen, and the crocodile prince seems to have disappeared.
The tank speeds through the roads. The streets crumble. Ravens scream. But Cragger... He disappeared. Slipped through my fingers. To not be seen again. I— I failed. He saved me once... And yet, I failed him— to save him. My chest lets out a spontaneous burst of pain— I cough and drool. The saliva drips down my lips to my tunic. I failed... This mess happened because I didn't open that case. It's all my fault. My throat feels weird, and I keep coughing. It... It should've been me.
"I think I see someone!", Lennox screams.
"Plug in more Chi!", Dad picks up a Chi gun and points it forward, "Now!"
Longtooth rushes to the back of the vehicle; then, a blue light bursts across its exterior. From afar, I see that bird... And... Cragger!
I shout with joy, "He's alive!"
Something closes my mouth shut, piercing my face with sharp claws. I sink my nails on the black paws. Dad turns around and triggers his gun; the Chi bullet runs and almost hits me. The animal lets me go, and runs away. Another bullet goes through him, bright as day, piercing his pitch black pelt— Wilhurt, you monster! I try to grab his tail, but he's already gone.
Cragger bursts into tears, as he sprints towards Longtooth, who jumped off the tank to fight against his kidnapper. When the bodyguard brings him up to safety, my friend rushes towards me, and hugs me tight. I clutch onto his harms, harder than ever before. I won't let him go. I won't let him die like that.
UNFINISHED.
