Chapter 24 - Avoid The Worst

  The path just stops. Half way down the arch of the next tunnel, the inset stone stairs just end. Alex edges closer to the tunnel’s mouth, still carefully keeping his back against the wall. The closer he gets, Alex starts feeling the cooling breeze being drawn into the burning territory. Alex crouches down, leaning to peek over the edge.

  The tunnel mouth is much like the hollow cone of Last To Burn’s land, charred stone sides, a floor wreathed in flames. At the edge of the fire is a few yards of bare and untouched stone. And just beyond that, the cavernous tunnel erupts into an explosion of color. Lush, thick greenery covers every surface, enormous flowers bloom with their buds unfolding towards the extra light of the fires. Alex takes in the visual riot of vibrant life for a moment, forgetting the reason he’d even been precariously leaning out over the edge.

  Hara breaks him out of the awe-struck wonder. “Alex see way past?” She asks, anxiously tip-tapping her metallic claws against the stair. While she might not be affected by the heat, the confined path of the stairway is another matter. There isn’t enough room to move. If something happens, she won’t have anywhere to go.

  Alex refocuses on the issue at hand, taking a closer look at the tunnel wall beside them and below. On closer inspection, he discovers ladder-like handholds cut into the stone heading down to the stretch of bare stone bordering the territory’s flames. “Yeah, I see a way down. For me at least. But…” He trails off, worriedly looking back at Hara. “It’s a ladder, sort-of. I can climb down easily enough, but you, I have no idea how to get you down.” He winces, sitting back on his heels to consider their options.

  Hara cocks her head. “How far?” She asks, prompting Alex to lean again.

  “Maybe 200 feet? Probably more.” Alex answers with a shudder, imagining falling that far. He sits down with his back against the wall, legs dangling over the edge. “I don’t kno-” He’s cut off as Hara steps over his lap, barely able to squeeze past.

  Without a moment’s hesitation, Hara simply jumps over the edge. “HARA!” Alex screams, his blood running cold as he lurches over onto his stomach to look over the edge, arm outstretched as if he’d be able to catch the living boulder as she plummets. Corvus had launched off her back a moment before the jump, and he flaps next to Alex’s prone form, both watching as Hara rockets towards the ground.

  The scant few seconds stretch into an eternity as Alex’s horror builds. Four seconds that feel like a lifetime. Then she hits. Alex sees a spray of stone flakes right before the resounding thunderous crack of impact. “Hara.” He barely whispers before screaming again. “HARA!” He calls her name over and over and over. That is, until a beak raps him sharply on the back of the head.

  Alex jerks his head up to stare wide-eyed at Corvus. His mind is a whirl, and only as it starts to settle slightly is Corvus’s voice able to break through. “Alex. Alex, get a hold of yourself.” The crow urges him. “Breathe.”

  Still panicked, Alex sucks in a shuddering breath, trembling and pointing with a shaky arm. “Hara… She just… I couldn’t…” He stammers, only to be cut off by a very stern caw.

  “She. Is. Fine.” Corvus says forcefully. The harsher tone finally gives Alex pause. “I dare say, Alex, that your screaming is doing more damage to your throat than that fall did to her.” He continues in a gentler manner. “You’re in far more danger from panicking. So please, breathe. Collect yourself. And then look. Really look.”

  Alex gulps air, his hammering heart slowing gradually. He takes a few more shaky breaths before daring to lean over the edge again. Far below, he can see the unmoving mound of Hara’s body, the crystalline protrusions of her back catching the firelight. He’s about to break out in defeated tears when he sees it. Hara moves.

  Rocking side to side, Hara tries to dislodge herself from the shallow crater she caused. Stupid rock, getting her stupid legs stuck after a stupid fall. She growls and grunts, finally able to pull her forelegs out of the stone, sending a shower of stone fragments clattering over the ground. With her front free, Hara has the leverage to pull her haunches out, hindlegs causing more rock debris to come loose. Then she shakes herself off and turns to look up at Alex. She can hear him shouting, and when she sees his face her ears wilt and her tail curls under her. Alex looks really upset.

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  Corvus gives Alex another sharp peck to the back of the head, halting Alex’s attempt to start climbing down. “Alex, wait. You will fall if you attempt to climb down like this.” The crow urges. Begrudgingly, Alex relents, taking a few minutes longer and giving his hands time to stop trembling. Then he carefully starts making his way down.

  The steps of the carved ladder are angled slightly, providing quite secure handholds. With Corvus’s insistence, Alex forces himself to go slowly. One hand then one foot at a time. About half-way down, Alex has to pause to rest while holding onto the lip of the ladder rung. He didn’t imagine climbing down a ladder would be this strenuous.

  Arms and legs burning, he finally reaches the floor of the tunnel and drops the last few feet to the ground. Hara is there waiting for him, looking worried. As soon as his feet hit the ground, Alex spins around and rushes to her. He drops to his knees and wraps his arms around the big hound’s neck. To anyone else, it would be tight enough to choke. But being what she is, it doesn't bother Hara.

  “Alex?” She asks after a few moments of just letting him hug her. “Hara didn’t mean to make Alex upset.” She tries to apologize, only to have Alex grip her tighter. “Please no be mad at Hara.”

  That seems to shake something loose. Alex pulls back to look at her. “I’m not mad. I just…” He trails off, letting out a shaky breath. “I was scared. I saw you jump, saw you falling. And I…” He can’t finish the words, and just hugs her again.

  Hara doesn’t understand, but if squeezing her helps Alex feel better, she’ll let him do it as long as he wants. “Alex not mad?” She asks, ears perking up a bit and her tail uncurls. Alex just shakes his head. “Good. Hara doesn’t want Alex to be mad at Hara.” She starts to wag again.

  When Alex finds his voice again, he sits back on his heels to look at Hara. She doesn’t seem hurt at all, her stone body doesn’t even seem scuffed. Corvus had been right. His raw throat was hurt worse than she was. Alex lets out a horse chuckle. “I was scared you were going to get hurt badly.” He says while rubbing her neck. “If I were to jump like that, I don’t think I’d survive it. So when I saw you jump, it made me panic.”

  Realizing the problem, Hara’s ears wilt again and she leans in to rub her face against Alex’s neck and cheek. “Hara ok. Hara not get hurt. Promise.” She assures him. “No worry, no be scared. Hara tough.”

  Alex just smiles at her and rubs her ears. Corvus flaps over and lands on Alex’s shoulder. “She is indeed a tough girl. But Alex, you’ve forgotten something critical.” The crow says, eyeing Alex critically. “Even if the fall had damaged Hara, it would have been impossible for it to kill her.”

  With a look of confusion, Alex turns to look at Corvus. “What do you mean?” He asks, then looks back at Hara. Then it clicks and Alex groans while smacking himself on the forehead. “Animus. She has Animus.” He realizes too late. “Still the same though, getting hurt would still be painful, right?”

  Corvus nods with a soft caw. “Yes, it would be. Animus does not stop the holder from feeling pain. And a normally lethal injury is still traumatic.” He agrees, then launches off to land on Hara’s head instead. He gives her a gentle tap between the eyes with his beak. “All the same, Hara. Try not to scare poor Alex into an early grave.” He teasingly admonishes her.

  The hound ducks her head a bit with a soft yip. “Hara sorry.” She apologizes with a hint of amusement in her mental voice.

  With a beat of wings, Corvus launches into the air again and flies in a loose circle around the pair. “I believe now is the ideal time for us to part ways. I should not take long to complete my business.” Corvus says from his aerial position. “Alex, trust your instincts. And trust Hara.”

  Alex looks up and nods. “We’ll be careful.” Alex answers, faltering for something to say back. He settles on an uncertain “You be careful too, ok?” Corvus gives a parting caw, then disappears in a blur down the jungle-like tunnel.

  Hara looks where Corvus disappeared for a while before turning her gaze on Alex. “Which way we go?” She asks.

  It takes him a few moments to get his bearings. But like the tug of a compass needle, Alex turns to look in the same direction the spiraling stairway had been curling. “That way.” He says, pointing. “Corvus warned us to stay on the outer edge, so we’ll stick close to the walls. Hopefully we can avoid the worst of the fires that way.”

  The hound moves in beside Alex, nosing under his other hand. “Alex know where to go. Hara follow.” She says with far more confidence than Alex feels. Reassured by her presence, he starts to walk towards the other side of the tunnel-mouth. Hara trots along at his side, holding unwavering faith that wherever Alex leads, it’s where she wants to be too.

  At the far side, Alex pauses. To go further, they’ll have to step onto the smoldering edges of the territory. With a hesitant step, Alex sets his boot onto the charred area. Immediately he can feel the heat radiating up through the soul of the boot. Hara mimics him, taking one step over the line. If she even feels the heat, she doesn’t show it. With no further ill effects, Alex sets off.

  The ground seems to spark with every step, with Hara’s metal claws kicking up more of them than Alex’s boots. Luckily, the flickering tongues of flames didn’t seem interested in spreading to Alex’s clothes. Hara trots alongside him, the shifting light playing off the crystals embedded in her back and sides. The oppressive heat is all the encouragement they need to pick up the pace.