First Course of Action

"We won't destroy them," Cole declared and then whispered to Lyra, "They might prove powerful if we cultivate their strength for our own benefit."

Cole sighed visibly for the Blightbringers to see, relief washing over him in waves at the fact he had managed to survive against such a creature without the use of mana or that… energy.

"I'm so exhausted…" He whispered as his muscles screamed in protest, each breath coming out rasped.

He coughed out once to clear his throat before deciding to take on the role of the leader again.

He turned to Kren, the crimson feathers of the valuable warrior dull with dried venom and fatigue. 

"Get yourself patched up," Cole roughly commanded, intentionally hinting a bit of respect to his voice, he needed to gain the full trust and respect of the Blightbringers' after all. 

"Those wounds deserve more than just moonlight and grit."

Kren, his crimson gaze meeting Cole's, managed a gruff chuckle. "Yes sir!"

Their eyes locked for a moment, a silent moment of seriousness passing between the two until Cole recalled.

"Ah, yes. I trust you to secure the eggs somewhere warm. If any harm comes to them, you'll be saying goodbye to the light of life."

Kren nodded, cradling the precious cargo carefully. 

The Blightbringers, though exhausted, moved with a sense of purpose as they prepared for the aftermath of the battle. Cole's leadership had proven its results, earning himself enough respect for now.

Then, Kren turned, limping towards his clay house of a hut that was resided by multiple Blightbringers currently, his talons leaving bloody streaks on the trampled earth.

'He did well. I guess he truly fought for this big family of a tribe they have. But that aside–'

Cole's gaze shifted to the interpreter, lying unconscious far from the base of the chief's house where Cole himself was supposed to be resting in right now.

Kaia, the young Blightbringer, instantly cut through the distance and hovered beside the interpreter, her emerald feathers tinged with concern. A thin crimson line trickled down the back of the interpreter's head, marred against his pale plumage.

"Don't worry, little one," Cole murmured, crouching beside them. He gently brushed aside strands of feathers, revealing a shallow laceration. "This looks more like a wound caused by the impact against the clay house rather than a fang."

Kaia chirped softly, her beak nudging the interpreter's head. Cole reached out, gently placing a hand on her wing. "Go on, Kaia. You need rest too. Lyra will watch over him, it's something that can be taken care of easily with a little water."

'Kaia is a very strong one. She seems young and with the potential she displayed, she might become an essential weapon in the future. I need her by my side.

The young Blightbringer hesitated, then with a final look at the interpreter, she fluttered to Cole's shoulder, nestling close. 

He grinned, a genuine smile that reached his eyes for the first time since the battle.

'Feeling a little bit of warmth after so long… doesn't seem so bad. Even if it's another species though.' Cole couldn't help but relish the feeling of platonic warmth unconsciously before Kaia flew again to her parents who had already situated themselves in a clay house.

He glanced over at Lyra, her glacial form already perched on a makeshift ice stool near the entrance of the chief's house. 

"I see you've frozen the body of the Silver Serpent. Wouldn't it be difficult to maintain it like that?"

"It will only seep a little at my mana…' She voiced as she stood up, the ice stool melting.

"I see." He said and moved inside, signaling for her to do so too.

With a groan, he sat on the straw grass floor, his back resting against the clay wall.

"This seems like it's going to be troublesome," Cole confided in the darkness, his voice barely a whisper.

Lyra's form shifted, her voice echoing softly in the night. 

"Indeed. The eggs, while a potential asset, have made us targets. The Silver Serpents will not forgive the loss of their offspring."

Cole forced himself to stand up and paced restlessly, the cool night air offering little setback to his burning face from stress. 

"Should we... negotiate? Offer one egg as a gesture of peace?"

Lyra scoffed, disregarding the idea immediately. "Peace with creatures driven by primal instinct? They see weakness, Cole, not olive branches."

Cole slumped back onto the straw again, frustration gnawing at him. 

"Then what do we do? Hide behind the barrier of the village until they come knocking? We can't just..." He trailed off, the enormity of their situation already suffocating him.

"We adapt, Cole. We are in the Forest of Skyleaves, a land teeming with resources and possibilities. We have the city of Mistveil, within reach. Perhaps it holds answers or allies that we haven't even considered."

His eyes narrowed, a spark of defiance dancing in the depths. 

"If the Silver Serpents manage to get through the Blightbringers' barrier in multiple numbers, we're screwed. We either have to relocate the whole tribe or let them die off."

"That wouldn't be efficient," Lyra agreed.

"I know," Cole admitted, a sense of frustration in his voice. "What do we do at this point? I feel so... suffocated, like nothing but failure awaits us considering we have a whole Kingdom we're fighting against."

Lyra couldn't help but approach him, her cold hand hovering over his shoulder for a fleeting moment before withdrawing. Cole, while thinking with his closed eyes and a frown on his face didn't notice this.

"We'll find a way through. We're in the Forest of Skyleaves, inside the barrier and village of the Blightbringers. Mistveil is just next to the forest of Skyleaves. We can easily use a Blightbringer to fly across the whole Forest and see what we can acquire to our benefit."

"Wait... Why did I never think of that…?!" Cole laughed at his oversight, realizing the logical solution.

"That's right. We have Mistveil. Word might have reached that someone has caused a rebellion against the King, and I might be wanted... We'll gather information, assess our options, and then..." He paused, a grin curling his lips. "Then we show these serpents what happens when they mess with us."

"I see, that's what we will do then. For now, goodnight," Cole said as Lyra nodded, taking her place outside to keep watch through the night even though he was exhausted.

'She needs rest.' But he knew that Lyra used too much magic and needed immediate rest regardless if she showed pain and tiredness through her stoic face or not.

"Mistveil is our first course of action," Cole affirmed before leaving the door. "We need to know what ripple effects our rebellion has created, assess the political landscape, and see if any allies–potential ones–reside within its walls."