Chapter 3 - Through The Swamps

She tried to open her eyes. Everything was blurry and white. She squinted to keep them open as they adjusted to the new place. It all seemed so strange.

Eva was much warmer now, her body was wrapped in a blanket as she lay on an operating table. She wasn't shivering like before, but her delicate body was still numb from the attack earlier. She looked to see her belly was wrapped, and she was no longer bleeding. She wondered where her mother was, and tried to call out to her.

Her voice was soft and barely audible, but she tried. The sounds came out, and she listened.

"You idiot, Brutus!", a voice came, "The thing was going to be dead anyway. Why didn't you let me eat it?" "Quiet, Killer.", another voice replied, "The fawn is still asleep. I may eat meat but I don't torture young animals like you do." The two appeared in the doorway, one of the dogs blocking the other. Killer growled, "Let me in there, so I can put it out of it's misery." Brutus shook his head, "Leave the poor thing alone.", he said.

"Killer, shut up!", another booming voice came, and the man kicked the dog. Killer yelped again and fled. "Dumb mutt.", the man said, and turned to Brutus, "It's alright, Brutus. We'll leave the fawn here." Eva could barely see the man - he was a giant to her, and when his eyes met hers, she cowered and looked away. "Come on, let's go.", the man said to his dog, and walking off, called to Killer. Eva heard a loud thump, and then silence.

She called out again, this time her voice was a little louder. A new sound heard, a thumping that came closer. Another human appeared in the doorway, who walked up to the table and knelt to meet the fawn face to face. "Hello there.", the female said, her voice softer than the other human's. She reached out and caressed the little white fawn, and her hand was gentle and warm.

Eva tried to speak again, but she didn't know how to say what she wanted. The human stood and picked up something nearby. She returned to the table and held something before Eva, touching the end of it to her mouth. Eva slowly opened her mouth and began to suckle from the thing.

It was just like mother's milk. She slowly closed her eyes as she drank, and when she was done, the fawn relaxed and slept again.

-=|~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|=-

Jaclyn awoke and looked around. She was laying alone in the jungle, and sitting up she realized she must have dozed off. The lioness sniffed the air. "That smell...that's...", she began to say as she turned and looked back at the pridelands in horror.

The wilderness was glowing. Jaclyn raced back to her pride, the air becoming more musty the closer she got. She stopped and gazed in disbelief.

The pridelands were ablaze, and the smoldering bodies of countless lions littered the area. Jaclyn could not see any of them moving, and the flames were already too intense for her to continue. She backed off, and called out for any of the survivors. Instead of hearing a response from one of her own, she could hear humans calling out to one another.

Her heart froze. The humans killed her pride. She went into a state of panic as the sounds came closer. Her instincts took over, and she ran. She never looked back, but only forward, sprinting away aimlessly, with no other thoughts in her mind but to survive. They weren't going to get her. She would make sure of that.

-=|~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|=-

Squish. Squish. Squish.

The sound echoed through a dreary swamp, as a doe and a young buck made their way through it. Each step was difficult for them, as mud seemed to cling to their legs. "Keep close, Axie.", Zephyr said to her brother. "I don't like this place. It seems so bleak.", Axie replied, hurrying a little more to keep up with his sister.

Zephyr stopped, her ears going straight up. Axie looked to her, "What is...", he began to say, but she shushed him and listened again. After a moment, she began to walk again, and Axie followed close behind. They continued a little farther when Zephyr stopped again. "Sis, what is it?", Axie asked her. "Do you hear something? It's a low sound, kind of like...", she began to whisper back, when her blood went cold.

Crocodiles were wading toward them, from several directions. "Axie, we've gotta run.", Zephyr said to him. "But my legs are...", the younger brother began, but Zephyr snapped at him, "I don't care! We've gotta go now!" She nudged him hurriedly, and the fawn picked up the pace. The swamp monsters were slowly closing in on them. She saw it, and Axie finally realized what was going on. He began to bound to move quicker, and Zephyr followed behind, guiding him with her voice. Axie stopped at one point, exclaiming, "Oww! My leg got scratched!", but Zephyr nudged him on once again and he kept going.

The crocodiles were behind them now, but still in persuit. The two deer were slow in this terrain, their hearts pounding as they tried to maneuver in the muck. Axie suddenly slipped and plunged into the muddy water. Zephyr at once went for him, grasping his back with her mouth and pulling him from the swamp. Without releasing him, she helped him to her back, as the young buck began to cough and spit the water from his mouth.

Zephyr, now carrying Axie, was able to move faster than they were before, and she quickly darted away from the predators. In the escape, Axie weakly said, "Thank you, sis..." She heard it, but didn't respond.

-=|~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|=-

They found a small hollow to rest in. The swamp stretched a little farther, but the night had already come, and they knew they were in danger regardless. The small cave was illuminated only by their pictograms. Axie was sound asleep, and Zephyr had dozed off as well. Her ears were listening for things, anything that would alert them, but they slowly relaxed.

She dreamed, she was back at the Endless Forest. There all of her friends were gathered around, all chatting and dancing. She tried to ask what was going on, but they wouldn't respond. Then, they all began to vanish, until she was the only one there...the last deer of the Endless Forest.

Zephyr awoke, forgetting where she was for a moment. She slowly relaxed, and getting up she walked over to a small pool of water. She began to drink when she looked at her reflection.

But it wasn't her. She never had large red antlers. It was her father staring back at her, a soft smile on his face. "What do you want, dad?", she asked the reflection. She heard no response, the reflection continuing to smile at her. Frustrated, Zephyr slashed at the water with her hoof. She wanted to walk away, but her instinct told her to look again. She then saw herself, her green feathers and all were as they should be.

Axie awoke and began to cough. Zephyr heard this and sat near him, "What's wrong?", she asked. Axie shook his head, "I feel a little sick...", he said, and slowly his head lay down as he tried to get some sleep. Zephyr was concerned, but she lay her head as well.

It would be a long night.

-=|~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|=-

A lone doe stopped and listened. Something was approaching her. Pan looked to see a nameless stag come and bow to her. The doe bowed back and turned to speak with a tree, "What's with these guys? Would you name them?" The nameless stag tilted his head and walked off. Pan shook her head, and turning back to her tree, she asked, "What? What fawn?"

The doe looked to see a fawn near the nameless stag. The stag had no idea that the fawn was creeping up to him, and before he knew it, the fawn began to sniff the stag...in the rear.

The stag, startled, jumped and ran a ways before looking back. "Why I never!", the stag cried, before running off. Pent giggled and ran off. Pan peeked from the tree - the fawn never saw her there. "How odd...", the doe began to say.

-=|~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|=-

"More reports are coming in.", Martisol said to the other two, "Another deer has been butt-sniffed by that fawn." "Who is it? Do we know his name?", Arya asked. Flightwood sighed, "Pent." "Pent? But wasn't he the one that danced on the pond and made those deer jump in and lose their sets?", Arya questioned. Martisol nodded, "That's the one."

Flightwood shook her head, "Something needs to be done about this. He's becoming out of control.", she said. "But what could we do? He's not our fawn to punish.", Martisol asked. "The mother! We go to the mother!", Arya exclaimed. Flightwood nodded, "Yes. Certainly she needs to be spoken with."

The trio seperated, knowing what they needed to do.

To Be Continued...