Redhawk Caldera And a voice, with the fear of a child, answers.

From this new angle, she could read his lips clearly. She caught every word, they just didn't make sense. And then she got a closeup of his battered gum line, complete with bloodied holes. Towhee wrenched her face away purely out of instinct, then slowly turned back as it dawned on her that he must've face-planted hard enough to hit his head.

"Well, shit," she said rather uselessly, wondering if she should summon Eljay or Fennec. She mulled for a moment, then decided she'd try to take Reyes back into the cave she'd been checking out earlier. Once there, she could assess Reyes further and then figure out if she needed to call on the medics. It'd probably be easier for them to get there than all the way out here in the deep snow.

"Okay, get up," she instructed, snaking her forelegs toward him and pushing encouragingly. "Lean on me if you have to. We're gonna go back to the cave. Do you understand me? Reyes?" Towhee tacked on his name at the end in hopes it might help orient him.

Her stomach dipped, hoping this was only a temporary condition and that she hadn't invited Reyes to a chase that would leave him brain damaged. The snow was supposed to be a cushion, the Sovereign thought indignantly as she waited for him to obey orders.