Redhawk Caldera Catharsis

Shrike breathed short breaths, and time seemed to drag by agonizingly as he waited for someone to show up. It was strange, but fear was what he felt first when he saw Peregrine, and he wasn't sure why. Some instinct told him to feel fear, but he couldn't exactly understand why he should feel afraid of the alpha. He knew Peregrine wouldn't hurt him, even if he had brought the murderer back dead when Peregrine had wanted to kill her himself. The sick creature was dead, and that was all that mattered. It was only when Sassafras showed up and cautioned the alpha that Shrike realized why he should be afraid. 

"It's her." He said. "She's poisonous. Found her dying." He said. Whatever he might have said next was delayed by a coughing fit, which caused stabing pain to his ribs and made him growl softly once the coughs had subsided, leaving him woozy and weak, with a trail of bloody spittle trailing from his lips to the ground. His lungs burned and he could feel the nerves in his body starting to vibrate, making the muscles in his shoulders and hips quiver slightly, off and on. "I'm poisonous." He wheezed quietly. He paused for a moment, seemingly struggling to find what it was that frightened him, and put it into words. 

"Gonna take her body an' go."