Blood-Bound (Chapter 3)

The cold beads of water skated along the girl’s skin, trailing down her face into her closed lashes. The icy drops of water pricked at her skin like needles, slowly waking Argen from her magic induced coma. She shifted groggily, feeling the tickle of feathers brush her goosebump riddled skin. Her head was laying on a wet but warm gathering of muscle, the shoulder of whoever carried her. She could hear the quick pulsing beats of their heart through the skin of their neck, something that was oddly soothing.

A cold, biting wind blew against Argen’s face, causing her to hide it behind her transportation’s neck, tucking her face between feathers. It shivered, slowing to a stop as it panted. She felt muscles beneath her shift, and the arms that were looped under her legs slack slightly. “Argen…are you awake?”

His voice jolted her memory, her eyes shooting open. Crow.

“Y-Yeah-” She responded quickly. “Where are Raven and my mom?” Sitting up so her face was no longer resting on his wing, she glanced around at her unfamiliar surroundings. This new, unfamiliar ground was barren and monochrome in an unsettling way, with trees that were sickly and cracking in a twisted, haunting manner. There seemed to be no sign of life except for scattered pieces of rotting food that Argen didn’t know the names of. Pits and holes broke through the rocky ground, some more hidden by dead vegetation than others.

“I have no idea.” He answered quietly, bringing her back to their conversation. “You can walk right?”

“Yeah.” She whispered, giving a slight nod as she slowly set her legs on the ground, moving her arms from around his neck. The path they took felt rocky and uneven, and Argen wasn't sure how Crow could stand it. She took a step forward, nearly tripping on a loose, jagged stone before Crow grabbed her hand, steadying her. “Maybe just stick with me,” He murmured with a small eyebrow raise, slowly leading her down the path.

The rain made every step slippery, and Argen was grateful that Crow had taken her hand. He was her only sense of familiarity in this new, strange terrain. Everything in her home was colorful and full of life, but this new land seemed dead and quiet, the quiet that you learned to dread. No birds chirped, no wind blew warm air against her face. A part of her was allured by this new area, her curiosity only growing to see what more there was beyond her home.

But another part of her was terrified, insisting they turn back and never stop running. Change was a strange concept to Argen, and a part of her wished everything was certain again, predictable. Instead, she was running from her father, who for some reason she could never meet, and she was separated from two of the three people she cared about.

Fear ate at her inside’s, dissecting what little resolve she had. She just needed to trust Crow, he knew what he was doing. Well…at least she hoped so.

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“Argen, do you see something behind us?” Crow’s hushed voice broke the quiet space, which previously had been filled only by the smacking of rain hitting stone. A chill went down Argen’s spine as she glanced around, feeling a sense of unease when she couldn’t pinpoint anything new or different about their surroundings. “No…everything looks the same..” Doubt laced through her tone, her anxiety only growing.

“How fast can you run?” Crow whispered, glancing at her with a careful urgency in his expression. Argen sucked in a breath, a ball of dread growing in the pit of her stomach. “I..I don’t know…fast enough..” She answered, her eyes skittering around their environment uneasily. She suddenly jumped, feeling her companion's warm breath tickle her skin as he whispered into her ear. “When I say go, I want you to run like there’s no tomorrow. Just follow the path. I’ll try and lead it away then find you.”

Fear seized at Argen’s heart and she only nodded, lightly biting her lip. “Be careful. Please.” She murmured, meeting his eyes after a moment. “You too.” He replied quietly, glancing behind them. “Now go. Remember, stay on the path.” He gave her a gentle push forward before spinning around, launching himself into the sky.

Argen did run, faster than she ever had before. Rain poured onto her, streaming down her body in wavy trickles. Her legs throbbed and her lungs felt dry despite her wet conditions. Occasionally she would raise her chin, opening her mouth to gasp down the falling rain, her only water source. Thousands of thoughts shot through her head, firing in a rapid succession. Worry for herself, for others and what was to come. Still, she ran until she couldn’t anymore. This area of the terrain was new, trees more closed together, still rotting but in concentrated groups. They didn’t touch the stone path, however, they got as close as they could.

Argen bent forward, resting her palms on her knees as she stared at the ground, gasping for air. She felt her ragged breaths every time she inhaled, causing her to cough before she attempted to catch more rain water. After a moment she looked around, praying Crow would find her soon. After another moment Argen started off again, stopping short when she saw something black and feathery in the corner of her eye.

She squinted, unable to see between the thick gathering of trees clearly. She didn’t know if her mind was playing tricks on her or if that really could be Crow. Ugh..but what if it really is him? What if he’s hurt?

Deciding to place Crow’s safety over her own, she stepped off the path, feeling the air shift around her as she did. It could’ve been the trees shielding her from most of the rain, of course, but something tugged at her gut, insisting against that theory. She looked around for a moment, taking a few steps in different directions before turning around, finding that the cobblestone path was now gone, replaced by more trees. Her heart dropped to her stomach, realizing she had no idea where she was.

Nononono where did the path go? I swear it was right there-

Desperation fueled her sprint as she tore through the thickage of trees, trying to find her way back to her original path, her last goal momentarily forgotten. I’m so stupid- feck- I always mess up!

She let out a sharp yelp as her foot caught on a root, causing her to fall to the rough ground. She felt tears rise to her eyes as she wrestled her foot away from the root, sniffling as she felt the shame rise. Why didn’t I just stay on the path? It probably wasn’t even Crow, I bet I was just hallucinating. She let out an exhausted cry, finally freeing her shoe from the thick foliage.

Argen bolted back up, gaining speed before slowing again, hope leaving her heart as she stared at the sinister trees surrounding her. “Feck.” She whimpered, holding in a sob as her vision blurred. She slowly started to stumble around, the bite of the cold air starting to affect her. The dead tresses of the trees crunched under her feet, causing her to jump the first couple times before it became an oddly comforting rhythm.

Step, crunch. Step, crunch. Step, crunch.

The sound echoed through the woods, only adding to her unease. Argen was miserable, cold and lost. Every now and then she saw the moving of leaves or feathers-

Black feathers-

“CROW!” Argen shrieked, streaking off towards the black blur of movement, determined to follow him back to safety. She chased after him through twists and turns between trees, panting through the stitch in her side. She really hated running.

Crow made a sharp turn and Argen looped her arm around a tree, using it to swing herself around the corner so she didn’t lose sight of him. She took another step, gasping sharply as she felt something thick and strong shoot up around her. It pressed against her on all sides, rough and sturdy as she rose in the air, forced into a fetal position.

She let out a breath, using her strength to try and push the ropes away. She knew this was a rope trap, one like she and her mother would occasionally use, but why did someone need one big enough to catch something Argen sized?

“Aw shelkops-”

Argen froze, hearing the voice followed by crunching leaves and she strained to move her head so she could see what was below her. She held in a breath, curling into herself as tightly as possible to avoid being seen. Suddenly she let out a scream as the net fell away, causing her to plummet towards the ground, knocking the breath from her lungs.

She gasped sharply, wheezing and struggling to gather air as she fought down her panic, tears finally bursting free. Everything in her told her to run, to get away, but Argen was too exhausted, too weary to move. Everything hurt in one way or another, and if this is how she went out then it was her own fault. She closed her eyes, letting out a soft whimper, curling into herself.

“Uh- Ma’am- are yer alright?”

Argen jolted slightly, hearing the voice from earlier. It was closer this time. “I didn’t mean fer my to catch ya, or for yer to fall like that.” It continued, close enough that Argen imagined it was right over her. She peeked open her eyes, and they widened when she saw him. He looked just like her mother's species anatomy wise, four similar looking limbs and a head. He even looked almost just like Argen feature wise. Two differences were his nose was pointier and his eyes were a bright blue, but he looked almost vampiric.

“Are… are you a vampire?” She whispered, staring at his lips for any signs of fangs. “Er- naur, I’m a human.” The human answered, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. Argen shot up, eyes locked on him in shock as she scrambled to her feet. “What? I thought humans were extinct!” She cried, staring at him in awe. “Naur, we’re uh very alive. Well. The humans that are left that is. I’m in the Trojan pack, and I’d ask where you’re from...but it doesn’t seem like from around here..?”

“You could say that,” Argen agreed with a sigh, her mind reeling at how this was possible. A human, something she was told was extinct, was in front of her. “Oh- by the way- have you seen a bird yokai near here? His name’s Crow, I think I saw him around here somewhere.”

Something flashed in the man's eyes, recognition most likely. “You know Crow?” His neutral expression turned excited, his eyes staying locked on Argen. “Yes! Do you as well?” She asked with rising hope, her own smile forming.

“Aw, of course! He’s my buddy, we go way back!” The human said with a quick nod, waving her towards him. “He’s this way, follow me!” Argen stepped closer, grinning as her heart hummed its own happy tune, thankful that her luck was turning around.

I can’t believe this human knows Crow- I can’t believe he’s even real! Seems like fate is finally on my side!

Her eyes went back to the human, who was watching her intently, in an almost…calculated, concentrated way. “What?” Argen asked, wondering if there was something on her face, pausing. The human began to speak, brushing off her concern before being interrupted by a familiar voice.

“ARGEN! GET AWAY FROM THAT!”

Argen’s head snapped towards the voice, eyes widening. She looked just in time to see a furious Crow shoot himself at the man, tackling him to the ground from the air.