Exile Tribute Set: Rest

The day had passed uneventfully after the group’s morning scuffle. Xibalba had insisted they leave sooner than the rest had wanted, stating that “The sacred stones are only active at night! If we make good time we can be there by sunset tomorrow!” Exile had requested they take a little more time to recover, but Xibalba wasn’t having it.

Now here they were, struggling to make the rest of their flight to the next rest stop they’d marked on their path.

 

“Xibalba, slow down a bit! We’re not as fast of flyers as you.” Asher puffed, struggling to keep up with even Exile. Her shoulder had been bruised pretty badly from their earlier fight, and now was swollen ever so slightly and causing pain. Gulo had insisted she was fine, despite the patches of blood on her neck and left primary wing. Her secondary wings were untouched, aside from a chipped claw on one side. Of course she was masking something. She had many cuts across her collarbone and shoulder, and had sprained her ankle when tripping Xibalba. Exile’s chest still burned where it had been plucked, but otherwise he wasn’t too banged up. Xibalba himself seemed very worn out and scraggly, but of course he pushed through the discomfort in order to lead them where they needed to be.

 

“We’re almost at our rest stop, just a little bit further! Maybe 5 minutes or so.” Xibalba called back to the group. Asher groaned and Gulo rolled her eyes, but Exile said nothing. He knew Xibalba was right; they risked being out in the open if they stopped now, right over a large cornfield. Across the way was a large outcropping of trees, one that signaled their rest stop destination. Although it seemed close, it was merely a trick of the eye in perspective.

 

“Come on guys, we can do this. Just a little bit further, then we can rest for the night.” Exile tried to assure them, earning a smirk from Xibalba. He felt a twinge of anger in his gut, but ignored it. Xibalba’s only with us for another day or so, then we’ll be rid of him. Just gotta deal with his antics for a little while longer…

 

Finally the rest stop was close enough that they could begin their descent, earning a sigh from Asher as she landed on the soft grass on the edge of the field. Gulo fluttered to a stop, touching down next to Asher and immediately shifting her weight to her good leg. Exile watched as Xibalba landed with a thud in front of the others before landing himself next to Asher. Xibalba nodded to the three in acknowledgement that they’d go find their respective sleeping spots for the afternoon, set to wake when the moon was at its peak. He then wandered off into the trees, branches crackling as he climbed into a particularly tall one to rest.

The original trio made their way towards a sheltered rock grouping, settling in and chattering a little bit to wind down.

 

“Y’know, he kind of creeps me out.” Gulo said, staring out at the swaying cornstalks at the edge of the field. Asher nodded but said nothing, head resting on her back and eyes closed.

 

“Xibalba?” Exile asked, but he already knew the answer. Gulo nodded, turning to face Exile while Asher sat between them.

 

“All those false eyes make me feel watched at all times. You get what I’m saying? And the fact that he just…appeared kinda makes me a bit…scared in a way. He could be anywhere at any time, observing us as we do who knows what. I don’t like it.” Exile thought Gulo’s concerns were very valid, humming in response. It made him more aware of his surroundings all of a sudden, hoping the creepy harpia wasn’t watching them right now.

 

“Well, let’s get some sleep, I think Asher’s already there.” Exile sighed, nodding towards the sleeping stryx between him and Gulo. Gulo yawned, tucking her head into her puffed up chest feathers while Exile rested his head on the ground beneath him, sprawling out and making himself comfortable. Sleep quickly found him, fading out his consciousness into the world of dreams.

Damp. His talons were damp. Now his legs, and then his underbelly. He quickly blinked his eyes open, only to shut them again in horror. Were those…eyes? Everywhere? He wasn’t sure he wanted to check again, but he cautiously opened his eyes once more.

 

Big white eyes were staring him down from all directions, reflected in the pool of…blood?! Was that blood he was standing in?! Where the hell was he?!

Exile tried to scream but nothing left his beak. He tried to run, but only stayed in place. He tried to shake himself violently in an attempt to wake, but it was almost as if he were paralyzed, rooted in place and being forced to have a damn staring contest with the cosmic horror he found himself confronted with.

 

Suddenly, a voice cut through the silence. The eyes narrowed, each pupil darting in one direction. Exile unwillingly followed their gaze with his own eyes, trying to squint through the darkness enveloping his senses. The smell of blood was overpowering and he almost wanted to throw up, but somewhere deep down he knew this was just a dream. Maybe. Hopefully.

 

After a beat of nothingness, a small light began to shine in the darkness. As it grew, the eyes began to quiver, a loud hum becoming a deafening screech. Exile quickly closed his eyes again and covered his head, trying to block out the horrible sound.

 

“Exile…”

 

Was someone speaking to him…?

 

“Exile!”

 

It was a familiar voice, and Exile suddenly felt a comforting presence. The world seemed to stop spinning around him, giving him the courage to open his eyes slowly. Tears threatened to fall, but once he took in his surroundings he managed to shake the feeling off.

 

Gulo stood in front of him, Asher behind her, both of them seeming worried. For him, or for something else…?

 

“Gulo? Asher?” Exile tried to reach out to the two, only to be forced back by some strange force. He lost his balance and fell back, but never hit the ground. Instead he felt as if he were falling out of the sky itself, as if his own wings had failed him. He screamed, flailing around desperately, trying to regain his senses. He suddenly stopped hard, but an impact never hit him. He peeled his eyes open only to find himself stopped about 3 inches from the ground, a cold slab of stone below him. He was quickly dropped the remainder of the way, landing on his belly with an undignified “oof!” sound. He pushed himself up, his limbs trembling. He was alone in the dark, only lit by one strange spotlight gently illuminating where he stood. Little dust particles could be seen floating slowly through the air around him, but the most alarming thing was the low hum that echoed through his mind. It quickly grew louder, another dim, red light appearing across the way. As it grew brighter, shapes could be seen squirming in the shadows. Two figures appeared in the new spotlight, familiar ones that made Exile’s feathers stand on end.

 

“Gulo! Asher!” He attempted to run towards them, but once again couldn’t move. A third figure, a much larger one, appeared behind his friends, his oily black tail feathers wrapping themselves around the smaller figures like snakes constricting their prey. Exile heard them cry out, their anguished calls bringing tears to the corners of his eyes.

 

“Stop it! Leave them alone!” He shouted, the scent of blood returning. A pair of emerald green eyes turned towards him, ones he knew all too well.

 

“...Xibalba?” Exile squeaked as the larger harpia came into full view in his spotlight. The world seemed to vibrate in his presence, the hum growing ever louder.

 

“W…what the hell are you?” Exile cried, tears beginning to fall. Xibalba said nothing, his friends’ limp bodies still wrapped in his silken tail feathers. Exile closed his eyes and covered his head, trying to wake himself up. A hiss could be heard from the larger harpia, forcing Exile to look up. His jaws were agape, a green light growing at the back of his throat. Smoke billowed from his nostrils, his pupils mere pinpricks in the sea of emerald green. Exile flinched, awaiting the burning impact.

 

In a flash Exile awoke, tears streaming down his face and chest heaving, gasping for air. He stood up quickly and looked around, trying to get a hold on his surroundings. He was back in the real world, surrounded by stone and cornfield, his friends standing next to him, heavily concerned looks on their faces.

 

“Dude, are you alright? You were thrashing about and crying in your sleep, were you having a nightmare or something?” Gulo asked. Even she seemed shaken, her eyes glossy. Asher stood next to her, but was looking at the ground. She seemed upset too.

 

“What the hell happened?” Exile asked. He wanted to know what that was about, his nightmare. Did Gulo and Asher have it too? If so it must be more than just a nightmare.

Gulo nodded, silently understanding what Exile was asking of her.

 

“We all had nightmares, ones about…you know.” Asher quietly said, shuddering in place.

Exile, still breathing heavily, began to take steps towards the forest where Xibalba had perched for their rest. He trembled as he approached the tree, the outline of the sleeping Harpia able to be seen from the ground. His silken tail feathers hung down, the white false eyes on each feather seeming to stare into his soul. He wasn’t sure if he’d be able to confront the harpia at this point, after what he’d just seen, no, experienced in his sleep. Was that truly just a nightmare? Or was it a premonition of sorts? Was that even possible?

 

“Xibalba?” Gulo’s voice startled Exile, making him jump. A comforting wing from Asher was placed over his back to calm him down.

The royal harpia stirred, grunting as he opened his eyes. Those emerald orbs sent shivers down Exile’s spine, remembering his nightmare in every vivid detail.

 

“Need something?” The harpia’s voice sounded more sinister than ever due to its lack of use. Gulo stepped towards the tree.

 

“We should get going. We’re all rested up and ready to go.” Gulo requested. Xibalba said nothing, but leapt down from his perch and landed with a thump on the soft grass below. He stared at Exile for just a flash of a second before turning away and lifting into the air.

 

“Well, let’s get started then. We should still be on track for arrival at sunset tomorrow.” The harpia called down to the trio. Gulo and Asher quickly followed in his wake, while Exile was left to his thoughts on the ground below. Did Xibalba have something to do with their nightmares? Or whatever they were at this point, he wasn’t so sure they were just nightmares anymore. Maybe this whole thing had been a huge mistake…

 

“Exile! Let’s go!” Gulo called from off in the distance, snapping Exile from his thoughts. He took a deep breath and took off, beating his wings to catch up. However this trip ended up playing out, he had a very bad feeling about it.

 

Exile

1907 words-38

Extra stryx-3

Flockmate-3

Tribute-4

Total= 48 AP

 

Gulo

1417 words-28

Extra stryx-3

Flockmate-3

Tribute-4

Personal-3

Total= 41 AP

 

Asher

1417 words-28

Extra stryx-3

Flockmate-3

Tribute-4

Personal-3

Total= 41 AP

 

Xibalba

1035-20

Extra stryx-3

Flockmate-3

Total= 26 AP