Of Kin

Act III: Griffin

Chapter 15

Silvermane sat next to the nest Corvi was sprawled in. It had been a couple of months since Kald had come back with her broken body and the news that Fryse was dead. She still hadn't woken up, but she had begun to heal. The Whitesky argents had taken the liberty of covering her with pelt from mammoths and wooly rhinos, whatever they could find to keep her warm.

She would eat and drink in her sleep occasionally but that was all. Silvermane shuddered. Corvi was the toughest argent he knew. If she couldn't pull through this, no one could. Be still had his doubts ... and fears.

There was the sound of footsteps behind him and Sundown was at his side with a sad look on his face. Silvermane didn't need to ask why. It was pretty clear how Sundown felt about Corvi.

"She's going to get through this," Sundown said. Doubt tinged his voice.

Silvermane looked back down at Corvi. Sje was all he had. He had lost a mother once already, he wasn't ready to lose another. "Yeah, she will," he said, more to reassure himself rather than Sundown.

The blue argent whipped his head towards Silvermane, a shocked look on his face. "You can speak?"

"I'm not mute," Silvermane said quietly, "I just had nothing to say before."

Sundown nodded silently for a moment. "You should speak to her," he said motioning to Corvi's nearly lifeless body. "She may still be able to hear you." Without another word he turned and left.

Silvermane looked down at Corvi before walking up to her side and lying down next to her, careful not to disturb her broken bones. He rested his head on top of hers. "You have to wake up eventually," he said quietly. "You don't eben have to stay awake. Just open your eyes, let me know your okay."

The only response was Corvi's shallow breaths.

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"Blizzard's Kin is whole again," Kald said, his somber voice ringing across the mountain to every argent. "Though I'm afraid it's not in the way any of us wanted. Argent's of Winter's Mouth, please return to your mountain and inform your flockmates of what has happened. We will all live there from here on; it is time for us to live as brothers and sisters again. Riot and I will travel to Far's Peak after the move."

Silvermane watched as argents lifted off towards Winter's Mouth. Riot went with them. As the assembly broke up and argents prepared themselves for the move, Silvermane flew up to Kald.

The new commander for Blizzard's Kin squinted at him for a second. "Silvermane, right? Don't worry kid, we've already worked out how to move Corvi, she's gonna be perfectly fine."

Silvermane shook his head. "That's not why I'm here."

"Then what can I do for you?"

"I want to go with you and Riot on the mission to Far's Peak."

Kald looked at him, slight amusment in his eyes. "Come on kid, you're not old enough to-"

"I'm an adolescent now."

"Hardly," bit the commander. The amusment was gone, he was dead serious. He stopped and sighed, his tone changing from cold to concerned. "Look, Corvi's like your mom or something, right?"

Silvermane nodded slowly.

"Then don't you think it's best you should stay with her?"

Silvermane was silent for a moment. "I think if it was Corvi in my position, if I was on the brink of death, she would be the first to volunteer for the mission. She'd want this to over as soon as possible so everyone could be safe."

Kald chuckled after a moment. "I think you're right." Then he leaned in, "Just don't make me have to tell her you died while she was still unconscious."

Silvermane nodded dutifully. "I won't sir."

[TRIVIA: Since Blizzard's Kin has been seperate all this time, they haven't really had a TRUE commander until this point.

Also, me making Silvermane II extremly quiet was a sort of tribute to the original Silvermane. He never said a word in The Final Feast.]

~CL1