Chapter 17 Not Without My Pup
True Black
Chapter 17
Not Without My Pup
14 of April.
Lobo moved in on the opening to the cave, the scent of Zig Zag was thick in the air. There was also something else, a predatory scent, and he didn't like it because of the danger that might pose to Zig Zag.
“Zig Zag! Are you in there?” Lobo called out hopefully, as he walked up to the cave entrance. But there was no answer, carefully Lobo slipped in to have a look around. It turned out to be quite a cramped dwelling, but he did find proof that Zig Zag might still be okay. On the floor of the cave, three of his moccasins lay in a heap, but what was encouraging was that his cape was missing. The fact that the cape wasn't there lead Lobo to believe that Zig Zag had to be wearing it. He concentrated more on the other scent of the cave; it had a definite undertone, which he had learned to connect to females. So the predator Zig Zag was with was a female. Lobo tried to place the scent, but he had never come across anything like it before, so all he could do was remember it for later.
Most likely the scent of that gryphon the pony was talking about… Lobo thought and looked around.
Realizing there was nothing more to do in the cave, Lobo moved out once again, and looked about. As he sniffed around the entrance and beyond, in front of his mind's eye, Lobo could see his adoptive pup and something else moving around outside; there had been a small struggle of some kind, judging by the tracks. From the looks of things, they had been sitting down for some time before they both took off together into the sky. Lobo gave a wine in frustration.
Perfect… How am I going to track him now? Lobo thought angrily. It had taken him a long time to find the cave without much of a real scent trail to follow. He had been fortunate just to pass it downwind, so the scent had led him back here, to what ultimately seemed to be just another dead end. Lobo turned his gaze up towards the Highlands. Judging by their general direction of travel, they were headed towards the mountains. Squinting his eyes, Lobo concentrated on something up in the sky just below the clouds. He almost leaped for joy when he saw some creature with wings swooping down and holding a little blue speck securely against its chest.
But his joy was short-lived when three similar creatures, now all resembling gryphons, came out of the clouds behind them. The three bigger gryphons were clearly chasing the smaller one, which was holding on to, what he suspected was Zig Zag. One of the big gryphons dive bombed towards the smaller one, but it just managed to twist out of the way and take off into the distance. Lobo immediately started running towards the flying creatures, but soon realized they were heading in the other direction. Since the ground here was rocky and uneven, there was no way for him to keep up with the airborne beings. Roaring in frustration, Lobo lost sight of them when they disappeared over the next ridge. Even though it was clearly foolhardy, Lobo picked up his pace, the fear for Zig Zag´s life pushing him on in his pursuit after him.
****
Raven dodged out of the way of Ocel once again, only to veer straight into the path of Jaggar. She snapped her wings in, narrowly avoiding Jaggar´s outstretched claws. She caught herself again and powered on through the sky. The adrenaline pumped through her system, giving her the strength she never knew she had. But despite her best efforts, the three bandits were slowly but surely closing in on her, and driving the two of them towards the ground. Her room for error was rapidly shrinking after each dodge away from her pursuers. Raven looked frantically around herself, trying to keep track of all that happened around them.
“Stop this insolence right now, Raven!” Lynx roared after her furiously. But Raven knew what stopping meant, the worst beating she would most likely ever receive, and even more importantly, Zig Zag would die. She clutched him harder to her chest, while her arms screamed at her to let go of the weight that was pulling her down. Stubbornly she pressed on, pumping her wings as fast as she could.
****
Jaggar screeched out his anger. Raven had somehow been able to dodge them for over half an hour, and they had covered quite a distance in that time, but finally she was starting to make mistakes, her fatigue taking its toll on her agility. Just as she managed to dodge one of his attacks again, both Lynx and Ocel moved in on her simultaneously. She saw and avoided Ocel but missed Lynx completely. So when he latched onto her back, she screamed out in pain and fear. Since she could not defend herself with her own talons, because they were holding onto Zig Zag, Lynx had free rein to pummel her with punch after punch.
The two gryphons and pony started plummeting towards the ground. In the last second, Lynx pushed off from Raven, giving her a final shove towards terra-firma. Raven still managed to snap her wings open in the last moment, most likely saving their lives as they crashed into the ground. The two youngsters tumbled head over heels, before they came to a stop. The little pony surprisingly enough started staggering up on all fours, taking a stance that clearly showed he had not given up. Raven just lay panting while she tried to pull herself together again.
Jaggar slammed down mercilessly on Raven's back, making her screech out in pain. He continued to strike her repeatedly between her wings, right on the vulnerable pressure points at the small of her back. Zig Zag managed to roll out of the way when Ocel tried to pounce on him from above, but Lynx caught his right back hoof and hoisted him up into the air, looking smugly at him. He did lose his smirk quite rapidly once Zig Zag curled up and sunk his teeth into Lynx’ exposed wrist.
“Ahhhhh! Why you little…” Lynx squawked angrily as he let go, then he looked at the four puncture marks on his wrist, and back at the fierce little pony in front of him, cocking a brow at the site.
“Bros… Is he supposed to have those?” Lynx asked and pointed at the small canines now visible in Zig Zag´s determined expression.
“I don't think so…” Ocel answered as he came up to Lynx side. Jaggar stopped pummeling Raven, and rose off her back while she gave a barely audible whimper. She stayed put, her wings still trembling and stretched out on either side of her body, nearly unresponsive. All she could really do was gasp for breath, since the agony running through her back and wings almost made it impossible for her to breathe. Zig Zag watched with dread as the three gryphons now stood in front of him, eyeing him with a mixture of curiosity and hunger.
“It doesn't matter! I still think he will be pretty tender… You two gather some wood for a fire while I tenderize this little morsel, just to make sure," Jaggar said and started to move in on Zig Zag. Lynx and Ocel were more than happy to oblige their brother. Even though they were more or less starving, sinking as low as eating a pony was highly frowned upon, even in gryphon society, so not having to do the deed of killing the pony themselves was okay with them. They looked around and realized they were on a rocky field, not a branch or bush in sight of even their excellent vision. They both gave an annoyed squawk.
“We'll have to go down to the low lands then. It will probably take us an hour to get there and back," Lynx stated quite annoyed at the prospect of one more flight.
“Then get going! I'll take care of these two in the meantime," Jaggar said with a little too much ill-willed anticipation. Nodding, the two younger brothers took off, and started to head back the way they came from. Jaggar now turned his full attention back to Zig Zag.
“So you want to do this the hard way or the easy way? If you're a nice little pony, I'll make it quick and painless for you," Jaggar said with a grin. Zig Zag glared at him.
“I won't let you hurt Raven anymore! And I won't die just to fill your belly either! If you don't let us go, my dad will hurt you when he finds you!” Zig Zag said fiercely, slightly amusing Jagger.
“Woo I’m trembling! A little pony is going to come looking for me, of all the things that could happen! That is the worst possible thing!" he exclaimed dramatically.
“If I ever come across your dad, I'll make sure he joins you in my belly!” Jaggar said, laughing at Zig Zag.
“My dad is a lot scarier than you! So you better watch it!” Zig Zag yelled back at Jaggar.
“Enough of this… time to prepare the main ingredient for Raven´s last cooking lesson!” Jaggar said and launched for the little pony. Zig Zag surprised Jaggar by shooting straight forward, underneath him, skidding to a halt behind him. Jaggar landed where Zig Zag stood only a moment before and looked back.
“You're a quick little thing!" he exclaimed in surprise, “Good! That will make this much more interesting!” While still laughing, he pounced after Zig Zag again and again. Zig Zag skipped, hopped and dodged around the gryphon, who was now starting to put a bit more effort into the chase. Jaggar had thought this little game would be over quickly; however, he was now starting to get increasingly frustrated. Even though Zig Zag could not get away from him, Jaggar did not seem to be able to land a hit on the little colt either. Finally he squawked angrily. Taking off into the air, he pulled out one of his knives from its sheath on the belt around his waist and then dove at Zig Zag, who managed to dodge the initial attack easily. But then Jaggar lashed out with his dagger, landing a vicious cut across Zig Zag´s flank. Zig Zag cried out as he stumbled and collapsed just in front of Raven, clutching his now bleeding left flank. Raven immediately seized him and dragged Zig Zag in towards herself. They both lay there together as the shadow of Jaggar settled over them both.
“Now isn't that precious… You finaly found yourself a willing male, Raven?” Jaggar said disdainfully as he loomed over them.
“Please, Jaggar… don't do this… We’ll find something to eat soon. Or a village, or something. Just please don't hurt him…” Raven begged with tears running down her beak. Jaggar grabbed the feathers on top of her head and viciously jacked her up towards him.
“Listen to you! Telling a male what he can and cannot do! Do you know what… I won’t just rip you wings off, Raven, I'll make you eat a piece of the runt before we leave you here to rot as well!” Jaggar roared down at the terrified looking Raven. Then he burst out in a wide grin.
“At least then he'll be with you to the end," he said, immensely satisfied by his sense of humour. Zig Zag hobbled inbetween Jaggar and Raven on three legs, and steadied himself as much as he could.
“I won't let you!” Zig Zag screamed and puffed out his chest. Jaggar simply slapped him aside, sending him tumbling again, leaving a red trail in his wake. He came to an abrupt halt as he slammed into something soft and tall. Whimpering, Zig Zag looked up, only to see the yellow eyes of Lobo looking down at him.
“Zig Zag!” Lobo exclaimed happily at having found his pup, but upon seeing the shape he was in, Lobo stance changed completely, suddenly becoming more fierce and intimidating. Zig Zag, seeing his surrogate father, wrapped his hooves around his leg and bawled out loud.
“DAD! HE'S GOING TO EAT ME! AND HE’S GOING TO KILL RAVEN! AND YOU HAVE TO SAVE HER! PLEEEEEASE SAVE RAVEN!!!” Zig Zag wailed out as he buried his head against Lobo´s leg, finally able to let go of all the fear and anguish he had kept pent up inside. That was all Lobo needed. He launched forward, as if he had become fury incarnated, aiming straight for Jaggar. The gryphon launched into the air, barely avoiding the snapping jaws of the monstrous, black wolf. Jaggar screeched loudly down at the wolf, while he circled above their heads, studying the new arrival. The wolf was massive. Jaggar had never seen a wolf for himself before, but according to what he had heard, they were only supposed to be a little bigger than a pony. This one was as big as he was! The wolf even had some sort of metal war collar covering his entire throat and neck, so he would most likely knew how to handle himself in a fight. Besides, those burning yellow eyes clearly showed what the wolf wanted to do with Jaggar if he caught him. And he only had to glance at the wolf´s teeth, being on clear display for him, to know the wolf would have little problem in tearing him apart. Jaggar was now boiling with fury at being denied his two prizes.
“If you leave right now, I might let you live, wolf!” Jaggar called down to the intruder. Lobo´s response was to leap after the gryphon, teeth snapping shut just below him, immediately making Jaggar fly up even higher.
“I said leave! Don't you know a gryphon always beats a lone wolf in a fight, you stupid mongrel!” Jaggar called down, increasingly frustrated.
“THEN COME!” Lobo growled back, his whole body shaking with rage.
“Yeah! Let's see you stick your neck out when you're not the biggest thing around!” Zig Zag tauntingly called up at Jaggar from beside Lobo. They were both now glaring up at the gryphon side-by-side. Jaggar screeched again as he circled the trio on the ground, before taking off after his two brothers, finding a tactical retreat being the best option right then.
“You will regret this, wolf!" he called back; Lobo answered him with a howl, proclaiming victory and the claim to the territory. With a last growl, he turned his attention back to Zig Zag.
“Are you okay? Let me look at you," Lobo said worriedly. After a quick once over, making sure Zig Zag didn’t have any life-threatening injuries, Lobo let Zig Zag limp over to check on Raven. She was still lying dead-still, her body hurting too much to really move anywhere anyhow. Raven watched Lobo with both fear and curiosity as he came close. Zig Zag timidly smiled at her, and then nuzzled carefully against her beak. This brought Raven out of her temporary fixation on Lobo, and brought her attention back to a battered-looking Zig Zag in front of her. The reaction he received was not what he had expected.
“What were you doing you idiot?! Standing up to Jaggar like that, instead of trying to get away! That was the most stupid, idiotic, boneheaded and unbelievably moronic thing I have ever seen!!!” Raven yelled at a now very confused looking Zig Zag. Then she grabbed onto him and pulled him into a fierce hug before taking a sigh of relief.
“Thank you…" she whispered to him. Zig Zag relaxed a bit and returned the hug.
“Any time…" he whispered back.
“No! If you worry me like that ever again, I'll beat the crap out of you!” Raven stated and gave him a flick on the ear. Zig Zag gave a little yelp, and started rubbing his ear.
“And who might this be?” Lobo asked, although he already knew the answer from her scent. Zig Zag bounced up enthusiastically, while he looked between Lobo and Raven.
“This is my new friend Raven! She saved my life when I almost drowned in the river! She picked me up and we flew away, then those others started to chase us. But she was such a wickedly good flyer, they couldn't capture us… until they did… but they cheated! They hit her wings,” Zig Zag´s eyes widened in a flash realisation,“Oh my gosh, your wings!” Zig Zag cried out at the end of his rant, and tenderly started to examine them. Every time he nudged them, Raven couldn't help but whimper. And she felt very exposed, unable to move her wings while they were spread out on the ground beside her.
"Then I thank you, Raven. Any friend to Zig Zag is a friend to me… I'm Lobo by the way," Lobo said from where he stood behind Zig Zag, watching what he was doing. Raven nodded in response, and hissed as a new wave of pain went through her body at even such a slight movement. After a careful examination, Zig Zag gave a sigh of relief.
“There is nothing broken, at least that I can see, so you should be able to use them… Can you?” Zig Zag wondered.
“No… not for a couple of hours at least. Jaggar went for the pressure point between my wings… a punch or two usually grounds me for half an hour. But I've never been hit like this before; I don't know how long it will take before I can fly again," Raven said apologetically, not even wanting to think about the possibility that she might have permanent damage inflicted by Jaggar´s beating.
“Can you fold your wings for now?” Lobo wondered. Raven merely shook her head; she was more or less paralyzed in her whole torso, just continuing to breathe was a challenge.
“No…" she whispered sadly. Zig Zag slipped off his cape and laid it in front of Lobo.
“Can you rip that into long strips that we can tie together?" he wondered.
“Of course… Why?” Lobo asked while he started ripping the leather.
“So that we can bandage her wings, that way they won't drag along the ground… That would probably be very painful," Zig Zag answered while he started tying the leather strips together as best he could.
“Well that's the point of it… It's quite a common punishment for a gryphoness, if we don’t attend to a male quick enough. They force us to walk around with our wings dragging along the ground. It's both painful and humiliating," Raven said with a shudder. Zig Zag looked at her with a horrified expression, an image flashing by him of his mother having to drag her wings like that.
“That's horrible!” Zig Zag shouted out angrily.
“What is with the beings in this realm? Why are they always so horrible towards each other, even within their own species?” Lobo asked no one in particular, and gave an angry grunt while he tore apart the last piece of leather. Raven was quietly watching the two of them work. Even though she had been terrified of Lobo when she first saw him, here he was helping Zig Zag tend to her… two males were helping tend to her? She just couldn't wrap her mind around it. Usually in a situation like this, she would have received a kick or two for being lazy when there were males around for her to tend to, not the other way around. Zig Zag and Lobo had finished their makeshift bandage and now stepped up to Raven. Zig Zag looked down at her apologetically.
“This will probably hurt a bit…" he whispered while he carefully ruffled Raven on top of her head. She smiled a little at him.
“I'm not some helpless girl… I'm used to pain…" she answered as a matter of fact. Zig Zag got a very sad look in his eyes.
“You shouldn't be… No one should," he said, and moved to Raven's right-wing. As he once again carefully inspected them, he noticed they were built a little different from pegasus wings; nonetheless, it didn't take long at all for him to figure out exactly how they folded together. Carefully and tentatively Zig Zag held them up against Raven's side then told Lobo to keep the wing in place while he continued with the other one. Her left wing folded up even better and with much less discomfort. Finally, they carefully bandaged the wings so they were secured to Raven's sides. Now she was finally able to sit up without her wings screaming in agony since they were no longer dead-weights, dangling uselessly down by her sides. She inspected the makeshift bandaging.
“How did you know how to do this? You haven't got any wings…” Raven asked curiously. Zig Zag got a faraway look, and his proud smile vanished into a cold nothingness.
“My mum was a pegasus… She sprained her wings every now and again, and since I was the only stallion in the house, I took care of her and the shop if she couldn't do it," Zig Zag answered. Raven cursed herself a bit…
“Sorry… I didn’t mean to bring up any sad memories…" she said looking away.
“No, it's okay… I don't want to forget a single moment I spent with mom... And it keeps me focused. I'll find the ones that did it. I will make them pay... will make them suffer… I will make them scream!” Zig Zag shouted, shivering with unbridled fury and breathing raggedly while he looked off into the distance. He was watching the exact spot where if one continued long enough, North Bay would be found. Raven looked startled by the change in the little pony. He had looked truly terrifying for an instant.
“Well… first we have to get out of here; those gryphons will be back soon. Raven… you can't move very well right now I gather, same goes for you, Zig Zag,” Lobo said and looked one with a frown at the slash that was marking his pup´s flank.
“Those gryphons will come for us again, and I would like to keep that encounter from happening until night has fallen," Lobo said, lying down in front of Zig Zag and Raven. The pup immediately understood what he wanted, and scrambled up to lay down between Lobo´s shoulder blades. Raven just stood still and watched, waiting for them to start moving off so she could limp after as best she could.
“You too, Raven," Lobo said.
“What…” Raven said, eyes going wide. Was she hearing him right? Did he want her to ride on top of him like Zig Zag? That would be so humiliating for a gryphon male, she couldn't even comprehend it.
“Come on, Raven! It's fun!” Zig Zag called out to her. Slowly, Raven moved forward, not just because of the awkwardness of the situation, but because it simply hurt too much to move fast. Carefully, she climbed on top of Lobo, clinging onto his lower back. Lobo turned his head back towards her with a raised eyebrow.
“That's not going to work, Raven. You have to sit up by my shoulders with Zig Zag," Lobo told her. Raven's jaw dropped, her heart hammering in her chest. Just the thought of being so close to Zig Zag made her head swim for some reason. She made her way slowly up towards him, and tried to position herself beside him, although she quickly realized that wouldn't work either. Raven and Zig Zag´s size difference wasn't too great; she was almost one and a half times bigger then him, and had about ten kg in body mass on him. Even though she would be considered thin for a gryphon at the moment. That left only one possible way for both of them to stay between Lobo´s shoulders. Ever so slowly, Raven settled down on top of Zig Zag with her arms out front. Zig Zag had gone a bit stiff now, though he didn't protest. They could each feel the others heartbeat racing wildly, and as they looked at each other, they shared a little nervous chuckle because of their close proximity.
“You… are you… okay?” Zig Zag wondered, since he could feel just how tense Raven was. She glanced nervously at him; while she tried to support most of the weight on her hind legs and lower for arms, not putting much pressure on Zig Zag underneath her. That all failed miserably as Lobo suddenly stood up. Immediately, Raven pressed herself firmly against Lobo, pinning Zig Zag between them.
“Okay, let's go," Lobo said and set off. Zig Zag shot Raven a timid looking, since they now had their heads level beside each other while they rode atop the dire wolf.
“Are you okay?” Raven questioned worriedly. She could feel his back rubbing against her chest. When Zig Zag turned towards her, Raven could clearly see he was blushing a little bit.
“Yeah… It's fine," he called back. Then Zig Zag surprised Raven by actually cuddling in more against her. Being so close to her just made him feel safe for some reason.
“It feels… nice actually…” Zig Zag whispered so low Raven almost missed it. Her heart raced at hearing that, and she subconsciously closed her arms around him a bit more. Raven soon found she just couldn't stop smiling, at least not while she was holding onto Zig Zag.
****
It had been almost two hours since the three of them set off from the stony field. They didn't have much choice but to head for a pass barely visible on the distant horizon. Zig Zag had, as usual when resting on Lobo's back, fallen asleep. Leaving Lobo and Raven to talk amongst themselves. It didn't take long for Lobo to realize just how hard it was to be born a girl in the gryphon’s society. The only word he knew that could remotely describe their situation would be slaves. And all because of their gender. He thought back on his sister, who was still in the realm of light, guarding the eternal pups. He wondered if the Alpha had elevated a replacement for him, or if she was now their lone Guardian. He felt ,without a doubt, she would be up to the task either way, and it was quite frankly impossible for him to think off her as anything but an equal. The way the gryphons were doing things just baffled him.
“So, how did you end up with those three dirt bags?” Zig Zag asked, surprising both Raven and Lobo, who both thought his inactivity meant he was sleeping. Apparently, he had only been quiet while he listened.
“They stole me when I was little…” Raven said, cringing a bit at the memory.
“Stole you?” Lobo asked, before Zig Zag could voice the question.
“Yeah… My little brother and I were walking down to play at the stream back home. He wasn't able to fly yet, which meant he wasn't a proper male. Otherwise, we would never have been allowed to play together…” Raven´s head sank a bit as she remembered the only male she had ever cared for in any sort of way.
At least until I met Zig Zag… She thought, and held onto him more firmly.
“While we were playing, Jaggar and his brothers found us. When they started shoving me into a bag, my little brother tried to resist… but there was nothing he could do. They just shoved him up against a tree, and then slammed a dagger down in front of him. I couldn't hear what they were saying, but he was shivering, so they just laughed and left him there. I was hoping the warriors from my home village would find us… but they never did…” Raven said with a sigh.
“That's just terrible! Why didn't you try to escape? They couldn't keep an eye on you all the time,” Zig Zag asked while he nuzzled up against her.
“It wouldn't have made a difference. If I fled, the first male I encountered would just order me to follow him. And that would be that… nothing would have changed, I would just exchange one group of male´s for another. Even if I were to be accepted by village, I would never be able to gain any sort of status amongst the other gryphon females because I hadn't been bought or won in a challenge or given as a gift. I would just be a free range, and therefore no male would really be interested in me, except for a night or two…” Raven said sadly. Lobo couldn't help but growl at what he had heard.
“That's just… revolting," he more or less barked out.
“Well, you don't have to worry about that any more Raven. You're with us now, and we won't let that happen to you, ever!” Zig Zag proclaimed fiercely, and then gave Raven a little peck on the side of her beak, like his mother used to do when he was upset. Then they both froze when they realized what he had just done, the color on Zig Zag face turning quite red as he blushed. Why had he done that? It had just happened. He timidly looked up at the very stunned looking Raven.
“Hehe… Sor-” Zig Zag was cut off by a loud screech. Lobo stopped dead in his tracks, looking up towards the twilight sky. Just beside a loan cloud, a little dote could be seen.
“It's Ocel!!!” Raven screeched. Both Lobo and Zig Zag squinted their eyes at the little dot in the sky.
“How can you tell?” Zig Zag asked. Raven looked at them curiously.
“He's right there… there's nothing in the way to conceal him. He's out in the opening and he looks quite pissed judging by how he is glaring at us… You can't see that? You two must be blind as bats," Raven said. Lobo gave a grunt.
“Vision isn't my primary sense, although I can see quite well in the dark. Which is why I wanted to postpone this fight until after nightfall,” Lobo answered, while Raven and Zig Zag slid off his back. He also wanted the blessing of the moon to keep him going; Lobo was starting to get quite tired, not having slept in over twenty-four hours. Not to mention he had participated in a drawn out battle, and then the long search for Zig Zag after that. He growled in annoyance, while two more dots became visible in the sky, closing in from opposite directions.
“They have seen us… we won't be able to lose them now!” Raven said, the beginnings of panic stting into her voice. Lobo put a calming paw on her shoulder, careful not to touch her wings; they weren't hurting as much anymore but were still very sensitive to any contact.
“You two just stay close to me, and we will get through this," Lobo said while he watched the three gryphons starting to descend towards them. It didn't take long before Jaggar, Lynx and Ocel came to a stop in the air, just out of reach for even Lobo.
“You're right, that thing is huge!” Ocel exclaimed while he studied Lobo. Zig Zag and Raven were both hiding beneath the dire wolf´s frame, although both were peeking out to see what was going on around them.
“Well if it isn't the tramp and the snack!” Jaggar exclaimed joyfully. The warning growl from Lobo could literally be felt vibrating through the gryphons’ chests.
“These two are under my protection; you will not touch a hair on their heads!” Lobo growled up that the hovering trio. Ocel raised one claw into the air, twirling it about a bit.
“Excuse me… Raven doesn't have any hair on her head! Does that mean we can beat her up again?!" he called down tauntingly while he eyed Raven. She immediately withdrew beneath Lobo, shivering violently with fear, thinking she might be at risk of being shoved out. Suddenly, she felt the hoof against her side; she snapped her head towards it, only to see Zig Zag´s warm and caring eyes looking at her.
“Don't worry! We'll make it! Dad is here now, he won't let those meanies get anywhere near us! All we have to do is look out for each other," he said with fierce determination. Raven looked deep into his big green eyes, and just knew he was telling the truth; as long as they had each other, the two of them would be okay. She gave a nod, and then once again looked out from under Lobo. The three gryphons had pulled apart, and now had them surrounded on three sides. Lobo was frantically watching each one of them, trying to spot weakness.
Wings… yes, thin elongated claws… yes, eyes and ears… yes… Lobo thought, as he started to mark off possible targets in the upcoming fight. Suddenly, Lynx threw something towards Raven and Zig Zag with tremendous speed. Lobo was barely able to snatch it out of the air, just before the blade sank into the side of Zig Zag. At the same time a loud clang announced Lobo had been hit on his neck. Had he not bent to catch the knife aimed for Zig Zag, that knife would have sunk into his shoulder. The knife instead bouncing off his cursed collar, only to land on the ground in front of him. Behind Raven, a third knife from Ocel sunk into the ground, just inches from her hindquarters. Lobo growled fiercely while blood started to seep out between his teeth. He had cut his tongue quite badly on the blade he caught; Lobo slowly looked up towards Jaggar again while continuing to growl, then he increases the pressure on the blade, until it very reluctantly bends at a hilt. Lobo dropped the now bent knife on top of the one which had bounced off his collar. Blood continued to seep out between his teeth, so he cleared his mouth by spitting on the ground.
“What's the matter wolf? Knife got your tongue?” Jaggar called down and laughed. Lobo didn't answer; the cut had made it too painful to even try shouting some response.
“The other´s aren't worth bothering with! Just finish the wolf so we can settle down, and have our little barbecue!” Jaggar called to his brothers, who both squawked in agreement. Then, as one, they were all rushing in towards Lobo. Time immediately seemed to slow down around him; Jaggar was descending straight towards him, with a knife held in front, ready to strike. No finesse at all just a frontal charge. The same went for Lynx to his right, but Ocel was still keeping his distance on the left. Holding another knife at the ready in his right claw. Lobo launched straight up, to meet Jaggar, who he deemed the biggest threat. Jaggar turned in the air and lashed out with his knife, scraping loudly against the Mythril collar protecting Lobo's throat, before biting into his shoulder. Lobo, however, didn't care about a little more pain, as his teeth were aiming straight for Jaggar´s throat. In the nick of time, Jaggar realized Lobo could reach him, and thrust his free claw in between Lobo´s teeth, saving his life. But the cost was grim; since they were heading in opposite directions, the force with which Lobo now wrenched the claw away was increased, ripping two of the three front index fingers clean off.
Jaggar crashed to the ground screeching in pain, clutching his now mangled and bleeding claw. Simultaneously, Lobo landed behind him, only to be tackled in the side by Lynx who stabbed his knife into Lobo's back. He roared out, twisted and bit into Lynx wing which was in easy reach, and with ferocious power, Lobo pulled Lynx off his back and down in front of him. Lynx did have the strength and the grip to stay put, but when the choice is, let go or lose your wing, the outcome is a given every time. Seeing what had happened, Zig Zag jumped up on Lobo's back, who continued to fight with Lynx, gripped the knife handle sticking out, and pulled with all his strength. The knife came lose, and Zig Zag jumped off Lobo, twisting around in the air to narrowly avoiding the dagger Ocel had thrown at him. Jaggar once again managed to stand up, screeching in fury and pain. Just as he was about to launch at Lobo, who was now pre-occupied with fighting Lynx, he felt a sharp pain across his throat. Looking back to his right, he could see Raven clutching a bloody dagger in her claw, the dagger he himself had thrown at Lobo just a minute ago. Jaggar sank down on the ground, feebly trying to prevent his lifeblood from flowing out of his open throat. He tried to call for help, but all the sounded was a wet gurgle. He looked up at the shadow now standing over him; Raven was there, looking down at him with contempt. She bent down, so she was just next to Jaggar´s ear.
“I have dreamt of this, but I never dared hope…” Raven whispered happily, and then slammed the dagger up under Jaggar´s beak, straight up into the brain. He gave a quick jerk and collapsed where he lay. When Raven looked up, she could see Lobo and Zig Zag finishing off Lynx who, while he was busy fending off the jaws of Lobo, had received a dagger thrust into his exposed left side from Zig Zag. After that, Lynx was unable to defend himself anymore. Lobo quickly ripped out his throat, so that he also lay gurgling at Lobo´s paws. Lobo stood quietly and watched Ocel who was still hovering above them, unable to understand how everything had gone so wrong, so fast. Zig Zag slowly went and retrieved the knife he had thrust into Lynx side, ensuring Lobo's victory in that struggle. Seeing that the two of them were both ready for him, Ocel´s eyes then fell on Raven who was now standing alone, and unprotected. With a screech of unbridled rage, he descended towards her.
“If I can't have you no one can!!!” Ocel screamed loudly, and looked at Raven with madness burning in his eyes. Still being too battered to move quickly, Raven knew she would not be able to avoid Ocel´s charge. Just as he was about to strike home, Raven was tackled aside by Zig Zag. They both went tumbling off to the side, while Ocel crashed down where Raven had just stood, thrusting his knife deep into the soil. Not having thought past the prospect of killing Raven, Ocel was completely caught off guard when Lobo fell upon him. A terrible ripping sound was all that was heard, and then the third throat that evening lay open to the cool and clear air of the slowly settling night. Ocel lay on the ground, while his life ebbed away, the last thing he saw, was Zig Zag helping Raven to stand up again, before giving each other a fierce hug. Ocel´s eyes widened in disbelief, and he struggled to stretch out his right claw towards them.
Noooo… she's mine… she's supposed to hatch… my son´s… Ocel thought, just before his claw fell to the ground, and he was dead. Lobo coughed and stumbled off to the side, and away from the carnage of their little battlefield. He had received several injuries but none of them were fatal. Just excruciatingly painful. Zig Zag came up to him, while he lay down to rest.
“Are you okay dad?” Zig Zag asked while he rubbed his head against Lobo's.
“Yes pup, don't worry…” was all Lobo answered since his tongue hurt too much to say more. Zig Zag nodded and turned toward Raven, who had joined him at Lobo's side.
“Are you okay Raven?" he asked. Raven smiled at Zig Zag.
“Yes, definitely," she answered and pulled him into another embrace.
“I have never been better…” Raven whispered, and started to carefully preen Zig Zag´s mane. Zig Zag, never having received this crucial form of affection from a gryphon before, became quite tense for a few moments. Then he melted into Raven's chest, while she continued with the very pleasurable experience.
“Wooow… That's just feels… wow…” Zig Zag said dreamily. Raven just smiled down at her brave little stallion.
“I thought you might like that…" she said and continued to tenderly preen him. To tell the truth, Raven actually didn't know why she had started preening Zig Zag, she had never preened anyone else before. But right now, it just felt right.
“Any time…” Zig Zag whispered back, while he started to drift off to sleep from the tender nuzzling he received. Lobo watched the two youths contently from where he lay. They had both miraculously come out of the scuffle unharmed, and what more could he possibly ask for right now than the knowledge that they were both safe from harm for the time being. Lobo then shifted his gaze towards the horizon, where the first signs of the moon rise could be seen. It was going to be a full moon tonight, and he sorely needed it. Lobo took a ragged breath, and then turned his head towards the sky, watching curiously while snow started to descend around them.
****
Thanks to Meeester and Syvvak for the Pre-read/Edit
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Yea!!!! Holy crap that was an awesome slaughter. I can't wait to see the next chapter.
now if only the true colors would update as well.
2102197
I'm glad you like it Xaldon! And my next chapter will have a nice surprise for all you who also follows True Color!
2102330 *sits back and begins eating popcorn.*
Oh this'll be fun.
This is so fucking precious, and part of why I love the story. Even when the lows are low, and it seems there's no recovering from one, you pull this out of your flank and have me d'awwing left right and centre. I do have one promise though....
You ruin what Raven and Zee have I'll burn you alive!
That is all.
But seriously, I reely do hope this is the turning point of the story for those two.
2102595
You can never have the hi in life without the low, and we've had some pretty awful low´s in this story. But low and behold, (sorry for that joke) we are finally starting to arrive at the turning point, the forces of good will start coming through, the helpless will get stronger from there trials, and some do-gooders will come from the most unlikely of places. So hope you'll stay tuned for more awesomeness two come!
2102675 Oh hell to the fuck yes! All in for this ride!