Lost Creek Hollow He doesn't know when to give up

Ooc: @Harlyn when you get the time! This is when Shikoba is back home after her battle with Shardul, set back a little 

Shame. It away at her bones as if it was a deadly virus. She couldn't destroy her guilt for not dying in battle. It was not a noble surrender to her, she ran in fear. She gave up and let fear overtake her.

She could not call herself Shikoba Phaseant Tail, she wasn't her true self. If she were true to herself, she would've died in battle instead.

Perhaps she overthought everything, but nothing was important anymore. What mattered was getting home. She hurt, every single part of her ached. Her muscles were tearing from overuse, the blood was washing over her fur. And her eyes. She couldn't tell if she was blind or just dazed or both, but she didn't need to know. She needed to get home.

Her wounds were very evident, she never stopped to clean herself. All she did was run home. The gouge in her shoulder from ivory teeth with claw marks stained her once clean fur. Her brow, her once clean forehead was stained with vermillion. Across her eyes were claw marks, it was amazing her eyes were still there. It was unknown if they were affected in any way, but what mattered was getting home.

The border, she was unsure if she had crossed it before she collapsed. Her muscles and legs gave in, darkness fell around her. The dirt smeared into her wound, it stung like poison from a snake.

She wasn't able to call out, her throat burned from the dry air. With the last bit of consciousness she had, she gave a short yodel into the air before falling into her darkness.

YaaaaY!  Welcome home :D

Harlyn was exhausted. The nightmares continued to keep her from getting any true rest, and that night Larkspur had decided to steal away even her tortured sleep by throwing up half the night. The mother didn't at all mind caring for her little girl, but as she dragged herself towards the borders, determined to set out again on her mission to find their wayward beta, she couldn't help but feel a tad bit bitter over it.

But the feeling was not meant to last as a sound echoed through the Hollow. Harlyn froze in her tracks, recognizing pain in that broken tone. "No..." the alpha moaned, tears springing to her eyes, "No, no no no..." The healer was quite practiced at not allowing emotions to overrun her in moments of distress such as this, but she allowed it as she turned on her heels and ran at full speed towards the sound. It was too much. All of it was just too much.

The spirits gave speed to her paws, for which the druid was grateful when she spotted her crumpled gamma upon the forest floor. She had known in her heart that this was what she would see and smell. Her packmate, a bloodied mess, stained in the scent of blood and the stench of the hell cat. Harlyn stopped dead for a moment, shutting her eyes as frustration, anger and hopelessness washed over her. For a moment, it felt as though she too would crumple into the earth in defeat. But the seconds passed and took away that state of defeat. The healer took over, and Harlyn stepped forward with determined calm to care for her friend.

"Shikoba..." Harlyn murmured as she approached, stepping forward tentatively for now until she assessed how the woman would respond to her presence. Some injured wolves accepted her help without a whine of protest, but others allowed their instincts to drive them to panic and react defensively. She was well practiced at either situation, it was just a matter of determining which this would be before diving in.

The darkness in which Shikoba floated in was a soothing drug, but the coldness of the frigid air made her shiver. Where was she? This place did not hold the scent of her hollow, nor did he sight. The only thing she could see was a greyed out world. Snow whirled around her as chilled winds from the east blew against her. She trudged forward through the snow, seeing light poke through a forested area ahead.

Her pace quickened, she could see shapes and figures in the distance. Slowly her eyes adjusted, and she saw those whom she had never forgotten. Her family. They were unscathed, they were calm, they didn't even see her. She ran towards them, calling for them. But the air blocked out her voice, they didn't acknowledge their missing warrior.

She came up closer, but they still didn't see her. She tried to touch them, her nose almost brushing against her father's shoulder. Before her eyes the fell with loud bangs, holes engraving into their sides and chests. Shikoba watched in silent horror as the scene from her past haunted her again. Over and over, they rose then fell. Over and over, blood spilled onto the snow. It was too much, too mu-


Awake. She was awake. Her body, it felt numb and heavy as stone. Her ears were clogged with dirt, her eyes trying to adjust to what was before her. A scent, a familiar one was close. The native tried to turn her head and see who was with her, but her neck ached too much. She continued to stay still, her breathing still ragged and forced. 

She could make out the voice she barely heard, it was Harlyn. Thank the earth spirit, she was here. Shikoba did her best to stay calm, if another had approached her, she would've tried to attack in her weak state. But the presence of a familiar made her at ease. She slowly lifted her head to look at her savior, she tried to speak but no voice fell.

Her head rested back down as her breathing became a bit more relaxed. The sting in her shoulder devoured her body as her scarred forehead and eye area gave her a headache. She let out a small, inaudible whine. One that was asking for help, she wanted comfort.

There was no aggression in Shikoba's regard of her and so Harlyn was quick to set about the task at hand. There would be time soon enough to ask what had happened, and the alpha had many, many questions regarding that. She set those questions aside though as she stepped to her gamma's side, sniffing and gently nosing at the various bruises and gashes upon her frame.

"Lie still," Harlyn murmured before she began to stroke her tongue on the worst of the cuts upon Shikoba's face. There would be no point applying medicine to a wound so covered in blood and dirt that the herbs could not even reach the ailing flesh beneath. It would be painful for the woman, and tedious for the healer. But if it saved Shikoba's life, Harlyn would have contentedly put them both through far worse.

Harlyn's presence was very much so welcomed by Shikoba. However, her gentle look over on the native made her muscles contract in the slightest. Her cold nose brushing against her damaged body made the native bite down her tongue to prevent whimpers.

Hearing the command to stay still, Shikoba said nothing but did as she was told. She then felt Harlyn clean her wound upon her face, wiping off the dirt and ever gushing blood. It stung to say the least, Shikoba's claws dug into the ground as small whines escaped her mouth. She however held her head firmly where it was, not daring to move.

As far as patients went, Shikoba was a rather well-behaved one. Harlyn gave a sympathetic whine as she worked, noting the obvious discomfort she was putting her packmate through. It was hard for Harlyn as a friend to cause this kind of pain, but the healer in her did not let it bother her. Hurting was better than dying.

Once she finished with the cuts upon her face, she moved her muzzle towards the wounds on the rest of her body. They were ugly, and definitely needed her attention as well, but they were not nearly as concerning as the others which needed to be tended to immediately. Harlyn moved her muzzle to Shikoba's and she ran her tongue across the woman's nose a few times, not to tend to a wound, but to offer some comfort before she stood to her full height.

"I need to fetch medicine for you," Harlyn told her, concern evident in her tone, "I know of a place nearby where it was growing last Autumn, though I haven't been there recently to know if it has returned. If it isn't there, I may be gone a while..." The alpha frowned, casting her gaze into the woods as if by some miracle, someone trusted would show up to look after Shikoba while she was gone. But there was no one. Harlyn was well aware that she was alone in this.

"I need you to find your strength, Shikoba," Harlyn said, leaning down and positioning herself alongside the woman, "I need to get you further from the borders, to someplace safe. We will not go far, I promise. I just can't leave you out here, unprotected. Please, my friend. I know you can do this, and I will help you every step."  She waited then, gazing steadily at her gamma.

She had finished the gruesome task of cleaning her facial wounds, the native felt herself take a small breath in relief. The healer moved on to examine the rest before returning, her own whine escaping her lips. Did she pity the fallen wolf?

Her tongue ran across Shikoba's nose, trying to comfort her more. Her body that tightened a bit relaxed a bit, though her tired ears perked up at Harlyn's words.

She was right in the sense that they needed to move more inland. She promised the distance to be short, and to help with every step. Shikoba found her muscles weak and torn, but would try nonetheless. Harlyn had positioned herself right next to the gamma, almost urging her to get up.

It was like a fawn walking for the first time, Shikoba was shaky and unbalanced. It took all her courage to move, even with the burning wounds constricting her movement like a python.

Slowly, she rose. Her legs gave in a few times, but she had managed to catch herself. Standing up as tall as she could without burning her shoulder, she began to weakly limp into the land, Harlyn helping with every paw fall.

Hopefully the path was close with medicine. Often, Shikoba would trip, but she was quick to catch herself, though it was all in slow motion.

Harlyn prayed then that the gods give Shikoba strength: to walk these few dozen yards, to push through her pain, to live in general. She could not bear the thought of losing one of her own, not now when they had so few left. And particularly not one that had proven themselves to be such an asset to the pack. Her children adored the gamma, and she herself had taken quite a liking to her. She prayed that this one would not come to the same fate as Ilya, even though she had always had complete control of that.

It seemed to take ages, but finally Harlyn came upon a place she deemed suitable for housing her gamma for the time being. It wasn't much of a shelter in truth - just a tree with a thicker than average trunk, sprawling branches, and a thick patch of shrubbery stretched out across its roots. She moved Shikoba beneath these shrubs until her sturdy frame was nestled comfortably in the shadows of the fronds. A cave would have been better; the alpha's own den better still. But there was no time to take her there, and Harlyn had no desire to chance her strength wearing out.

"You'll be safe here," the druid assured her, glancing about before leaning in to give the woman a comforting nudge, "I will be back shortly. Rest." With that, Harlyn turned and took off into the wood.

The path was long and rigorous for Shikoba, though Harlyn kept her afloat like a boat (heh H20 made that rhyme). Each step sent signals of pain through her body like lightning, and all she could do was continue trudging forward with support. Her eyes grew dreary, her vision darkening. She had to force herself to stay awake with every pawstep.

Soon enough, they had reached the spot. Protected, sheltered, small. Shikoba didn't care, she happily and painfully rested her body against the wood. She watched her alpha run off, promising to come with herbs quickly. Shikoba stayed silent, but nodded her head. She waited quietly, watching the forest come to life in her dark vision.

Harlyn moved as quickly as she could manage through the trees, using her memory to steer her towards what she sought rather than her nose. Prayers echoed through her mind as she went; prayers for speed, for Shikoba's strength, for the protection and guidance of the spirits, and for the blessing of the gods that she may find exactly what she needed to save her friend's life and soon.

The gods were kind in this at least. Harlyn came upon the herbs nearby where she remembered them from the previous Autumn. Some were but buds curling out from the earth. Others were already growing tall and strong. All were plentiful. The healer snatched what she needed and ran back to her charge with urgent, determined steps.

The alpha returned part of an hour later and dropped the bundle of plants at Shikoba's side. She whined softly to let her know she'd returned, but was uncertain of whether or not she would be heard. Nevertheless, she moved in to clean the gamma's wounds again as a mess of blood had returned to some that would obscure the effectiveness of her poultice. This cleaning went quicker, and soon enough Harlyn was smearing the thick mixture into the woman's cuts.

Waiting, it was hard. Shikoba's breaths were ragged and shallow as more helpless whines escaped her froawing lips. Why her? What did she ever do to deserve such treatment? She had made the deadlines for offerings, perhaps she had angered them in a way that was unknown. Was the hellfire burning her fur for a reason? Was the metting between her and the silver cat meant to be? 

Shikoba couldn't do anything. she couldn't move, she could hardly breath and see. She was pathetic. Her golden eyes slowly looked around, the tree above her almost curled over her body in an attempt to shelter her. Her eyes shut themselves as a strange warmth filled her. She slept.

It felt like hours until Harlyn had returned. Shikoba was still asleep, but her ears flicked slightly at the sound of a whine. Slowly, her eyes repeeled themselves open, for the blood had caused them to seal shut. The alpha had moved to start and clean the wounds again, blood was beginning to stir and spill. It hurt, Shikoba would often move a little in signs of pain. However, it went quicker than before. Shikoba felt a bit better after having her wounds cleaned, but could feel something thick get smeared in her wounds. She wanted to snap her jaws near the direction of Harlyn. The native had to bite her tongue and stay still, conserving her whines and pleas for the end of pain.

Harlyn could tell she said as hurting her friend. The tension in the gamma's frame was palpable, and she would have noticed it even were she not so physically close to the woman. But it did not change the fact that Harlyn had to cause this pain. Nothing else would save her friend, and so she did her best to give a sympathetic whine here and there as she worked to try and help alleviate the growing frustration in her patient.

When finally each cut had been well coated in medicine, Harlyn leaned back and pulled another bundle of leafy stems towards the gamma. "Eat this, it will ease the pain and help you sleep," The healer instructed her softly. It would take some time for the herbs to work their magic, but Harlyn knew relief would come. She settled then at Shikoba's side, preparing for a long night of watching her charge as she slept, keen to any sign  of a change in the woman that could be a cause for concern. The loss of sleep for herself would be of no consequence to Harlyn; she would lose far more than just sleep if she lost Shikoba.

After the gruesome task of wound cleaning and bandage applying, Harlyn pushed a bushel of leafy steams towards the native. She gave the plants a questioning look, feeling as if her stomach would burn and reject everything that went inside. But Shikoba couldn't risk playing with death. In heaping bites, she consumed the herb.

Having to force her mouth shut, Shikoba felt the urge to upchuck appear several times. However, her motuh remained faithfully shut and she managed to overcome her stomach's requests and rebellion. She heard little of Harlyn's words, but could feel her leader come to her side. The warmth of Harlyn made the native relax in her body, she felt... safe.

Seeing that night was still cloacking them, Shikoba let her eyes close.