Tales From The Temp Folder

[WOH] (DD) Meeting With Mortars

(11/20/22
So this short occurs imediately after What Did You Do!
The context is pretty much the previous two stories. There isn't really much else to be said.

Stay safe, stay healthy,
Take care,
-FishyFish831

"Grace! What's going on!"
I followed Thorn into the private section of her tent.
She's anxious. Anxious about something. And she more knowledgeable than me about any possible threats. If she's nervous, I better be as well.
"It's that camp." I swatted away her thoughts.
I saw her expression harden.
"Our enemy, the Japanese, they're stationed over there."
Thorn nodded, recalling something. "My advisors told me about it." She squinted at me. "How dangerous is it? I know Vaquero and one of your scavengers took a look at it."
I sighed. "They engaged the both of them. Shot at them, chased them off." I looked her dead in the eye. "They're equipped to be able to kill dragons within 300 yards, and injure up to a mile away."
I saw her frown, her gaze dropping down to the ground.
"If they stay there for any longer, they could get anti-air equipment. Then no one will be able to fly within three miles around their camp."
"That's easily the Scorpion Den." She pushed past me, looking out into the open sky. "Maybe even my Palace." She turned back to me. "How can we destroy it?"
I shook my head, rummaging through my mind for ideas. "I could try a covert operation. Chamoflage and dismantle the camp from the inside."
"No." Thorn said. "It's too dangerous. We can't risk you getting even more hurt." She looked over at me.
I met her gaze, worried myself. I shrugged and sighed.
"I don't have any better ideas. But that's not the only thing I have to tell you."
"Can it wait until after this?" Thorn looked over her shoulder, starting for her command tent.
"Maybe." I looked down and away. "It might involve Qibli."
Thorn stopped.
"You said, Qibli?" She turned back to face me. "What about him?"
"I don't know." I let her guide me back into the privacy of the tent. "I'm getting visions about him. I'm not sure if he's in trouble, or if he's going to be."
Thorn sighed. "I just let him and his IceWing go."
I stomped in front of her. "Winter? Where are they going?"
She shook her head. "Jade Mountain. Or maybe the Lost City of Night?"
I grumbled. Knowing Qibli and Winter, they'd want to take the fight directly to Darkstalker. That's where Moon is as well.
"You're also going to need to show Qibli how to safely use magic." Thorn commented.
I iced up. "Wait. What?"
"He got his claws on some enchanted arm cuffs that can summon a dust storm. You need to watch him so he doesn't burry Jade Mountain like he did here."
Before I could even question, suddenly Thorn canted her head.
"Is that... whistling?"
I quieted, trying to listen.

A brief vision took over.
An explosion! In the compound!

I looked up. Recognizing that whistling sound.
"Mortars!" I shouted! "Get in cover!"
The whistling sound grew even louder. Right on top of us!
What else could I do but shield Thorn.
An explosion cracked behind me, riddling everything with a swarm of angry bees, ripping up everything they touched. I felt the burning shrapnel bounce off my back, a few ripping into me.
Everything went blurry. I heard minds screaming, absolute chaos. I tried blinking my vision clear, trying to get my bearing.
"Grace! Grace!"
I recognized this mind, her warm touch.
"Are you okay? Are you okay?" She rolled me over. "You're bleeding!"
I got a glimpse of my back from her.
It was shredded, rivers of blood flowing down it. Stitches, easy.
"Hey. Hey hey." Thorn held me up. "You stay alive!"
"I'm fine. I'm fine."
I struggled to my feet. Trembling, weak feet. Adrenaline numbed the pain, but it felt like my chest was being constricted. My breathing was shallow and rapid, my entire body shaking.
I took a few ginger steps forward, before Thorn came up and supported me.
She looked me over once more. "We need to get you to the healers first." She forced my wing over her. "Come on. We'll deal with the camp and Qibli as soon as you're okay."
Slowly, she led me back outside the tent.
After adjusting to the dazzling sunlight, I saw the destruction that rained down.
There was a small crater right at the entrance to our tent. It couldn't have been larger than an 81mm. But this had to be a ranging shot, possibly for later harassing fire.
"Get inside!" Thorn ordered. "Dont go outside unless you have to! Stay inside!"
"Grace!" Travers ran up to us, slinging his rifle and trying to help me along. "Mortar fire. Sounded like from that camp. No casualties, everyone's okay. Are you okay?"
I could do nothing but groan in pain as I missed a step to avoid stepping on Travers. The sharp pain spread all across my back, from the base of my neck to the tip of my tail.
"She got hit." Thorn explained. "She protected me."
Travers groaned. "Yeah, Captains tend to do that."

Throwing open the infirmary doors, they quickly cleared pretty much the room for me.
"Ankh. Grace got hit." Thorn announced.
McManus sat up, alert. "How bad?"
Ankh breathed a small flame, looking over my wounds. "It looks like dragonflame thorns. But your scales took most of it." She started cleaning the blood from my back. "You're bleeding a little, but you're alright."
Me, Travers, and Thorn all breathed a collective sigh of relief.
"Grace." I heard a familiar scruffy voice call out. "Catch."
He threw his hastily rolled up bundles of gauze towards us. They quickly unfurled, landing haphazardly on my back.
Travers read my mind for once, pulling them down. "McManus, no. You need these." He started for him.
McManus threw his hand up. "That gauze is to be used to aid in Captain Grace's recovery. I will regain them after. That's an order."
I took a shaky breath. From what little gauze I had on my back, I already felt that aching pain begin to diminish. But at the same time, McManus was still in a lot of pain himself. Not to mention Travers, Ankh, and Thorn being utterly confused.
McManus broke the stalemate.
"That's an order." He wheezed, coughing. "Get Grace better first."
Travers looked at him, then back at me, then gingerly handed the gauze to Ankh.
I closed my eyes, as Ankh and Travers started working on me.
"I'll find out where Qibli was headed. You focus on getting better Grace."
As Thorn turned to depart, she paused at the door.
"And Grace?"
We all looked up to meet her.
She smiled. "Thank you."
"You're welcome." I said telepathically, too weak to speak.
She nodded, disappearing around the corner.
Ankh began to run the gauze over my back, slowly closing and covering my wounds.
"You just focus on getting better Grace." McManus told me. "I got the report from Travers and 'Cowboy.' I'm working on a plan right now."
I sighed, nodding my head.
We were just licking our wounds now. Once we get back up, we'll take the fight back to them.
I'll take the fight to them.