Chapter 88 - The Fox-Hole

~ SASHA ~

Dunken was a man of few words, Sasha discovered. She wanted to ask a dozen questions, but he led her quickly away from the village—so quickly, she struggled to keep up. Soon even if she could have found the words, she didn't have the breath to speak. Apparently he noticed her panting though, because a few minutes later he hesitated, urging her to squat behind some trees and rest for a moment. "I'm going to explore the best path to the position where we can observe without being observed. You wait here, and do not move!" he whispered urgently.

Sasha, wide eyed and grateful for a chance to breathe, just nodded and did as he said. But when he disappeared completely a moment later—no sound or sight to even show which way he'd gone—she suddenly realized just how alone she was.

Visions of Dunken leaving her there to be found by the other humans floated in her head, but Sasha shoved them away. Zev and Yhet both trusted Dunken. She would too. Until he proved himself untrustworthy. Which made her think of him ratting her out to Xar or the humans, and that, by the time she'd found out he'd done it, it would be too late to decide not to trust him.

She was still sitting there, stewing in a cycle of fear and determination when he popped up again, right in front of her.

Sasha sucked in a gasp and he clapped his hand over her mouth, holding a finger to his lips until she nodded, then he leaned into her ear. "Move as quietly as you're able." Then he tipped his head in the direction they were going, stood, and offered her a hand to her feet.

To Sasha they walked through the forest out of sight of the village. She had no idea where they were in relationship to the places she knew, only that Dunken was being very careful to walk silently, and urge her to step only in his own footsteps through the snow and dirt under the trees.

She wasn't sure how long they walked, but soon she realized they were curving around to the right. Soon she heard a babble of voices, like the rush of the sea, but she couldn't make out any of the words.

Then finally, as the noise grew louder and the voices became discernable, they stepped to the edge of a deep dip in the earth, where the trail dropped behind a cluster of trees, both alive and fallen trunks and boulders, to a creek, thin enough even for Sasha to simply step across. At its other side the ground rose again, but the trail disappeared under more boulders and a massive fallen tree.

Sasha frowned as Dunken trotted down the side of the dip, hopped across the water then began to climb the other side, looking over his shoulder to beckon her to follow. Then he seemed to disappear underneath the massive trunk of the tree that slanted out from the boulders and dead trees above the creek, to meet the earth on this side.

Blinking, Sasha hurried down and managed to step across the little creek without getting her feet wet. Then, as she began to climb the other side—steeper than it appeared, and somewhat slick—a thick, masculine hand appeared underneath the trunk of the tree. She grasped it and swallowed a yelp when she was yanked up, underneath the rotting log to a small space on its other side.

Her eyes went wide. They were in a room… almost. To Sasha's right the pile of boulders and dead trees made a wall, with only a few gaps scattered here and there at different levels that allowed light and sound through. The boulders and trees continued to stack and made an arch over their heads. Any gaps had clearly been filled from inside by clay and small plants until the ceiling was solid. With the gap under the tree behind her, she stood in what looked like a natural dome, completely dry and separate from the rest of the forest.

As soon as she was up and on her feet, Dunken stepped over to the gaps at the front, where the light came through and peered through, frowning.

When Sasha followed and found gap at head-height, she was surprised to see that they'd circled the village and were now on a slight rise above and to the east of the center of the village where she'd first seen Zev greeted by the other Chimera. The voices she'd been hearing were a rising tide as more and more men flooded into the village square. At first Sasha could only see Chimera in the crowd and wondered if perhaps the humans hadn't arrived yet. But then she noticed a cluster of activity near the trail they'd followed to come into the village that day, saw Xar in a long robe with that thick fur scarf around his neck, and his hair flying in every direction as if he'd been raking his hands through it. Alongside him stood to men and a woman, all dressed in the strange black clothing like the body suit Zev had fought in, though they also had tool belts at their waists, and wore what looked like hiking boots and beanies. The woman had a thick vest on over hers similar to a fishing jacket, with many pockets and spaces to hold small items.

The three of them were in what appeared to be a heated discussion with Xar.

"What's going on?" Sasha whispered. "What does it mean that they're here?"

"They must know about you," Dunken said grimly. "There's no other reason for them to have shown up again so soon—and it's why Xar looks like he just swallowed a lemon."

Sasha couldn't see the King's face that clearly from this distance, though it was clear he wasn't happy. "But… if they know I'm here isn't he just going to give me up? Why are we sitting here? Shouldn't I be running?"

Dunken snorted. "The humans have many advantages over us, Sasha-don, but their senses are dull. Xar accepted you among the Chimera and the females are prized. He won't betray you."

Sasha-don? "What did you call me?" she asked, looking at him.

Dunken went still for a moment, then shook his head. He never turned away from their view of the people outside. "It's nothing. Just a Chimera title. A slip of the tongue. Forget I said it," he said.

But she had the distinct impression he was suddenly a lot more tense than he had been a moment earlier.