Arran, eyes wide, rushed forward to catch the slackening figure before his head could make contact with the volcanic rock below. "Shit, shit, shit!"
He only barely made it in time, scrabbling at the stranger's unfamiliar clothes-- and with a low grunt, began to haul him up, slinging him over a shoulder. The effort left him puffing, and he sagged to lean against the unfamiliar metal thing the man had been standing before. It looked like-- a carriage almost, if terribly strange. But another shockwave through the ground that sent cracks fissuring through the volcanic stone under their feet.
With an urgent call, he summoned his mount, which came almost grudgingly, talons clicking on the stone, nosing around the rubble for more prey. It hardly seemed to notice when Arran lay the body over its back, securing it with a few spare leather straps.
"Easy, girl," he murmured, "Easy, easy. Back to camp-- thank the Moon it's not very far..."
He took up the reins of its complex halter, and set out at a jog, heading down the crags. His hand replaced the mask of his helm, latching it into place, its snarling face catching the smoke-thinned light strangely.
---
Some hours later, a careful hand was supporting the back of Dominic's head, while the other balanced a dish of water, trying to filter it past Dominic's cracked lips.
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He only barely made it in time, scrabbling at the stranger's unfamiliar clothes-- and with a low grunt, began to haul him up, slinging him over a shoulder. The effort left him puffing, and he sagged to lean against the unfamiliar metal thing the man had been standing before. It looked like-- a carriage almost, if terribly strange. But another shockwave through the ground that sent cracks fissuring through the volcanic stone under their feet.
With an urgent call, he summoned his mount, which came almost grudgingly, talons clicking on the stone, nosing around the rubble for more prey. It hardly seemed to notice when Arran lay the body over its back, securing it with a few spare leather straps.
"Easy, girl," he murmured, "Easy, easy. Back to camp-- thank the Moon it's not very far..."
He took up the reins of its complex halter, and set out at a jog, heading down the crags. His hand replaced the mask of his helm, latching it into place, its snarling face catching the smoke-thinned light strangely.
---
Some hours later, a careful hand was supporting the back of Dominic's head, while the other balanced a dish of water, trying to filter it past Dominic's cracked lips.