Upon Wings Of Change

Chapter 10

Another purple dragonet, the secret agent, flew to a tree beside the corpse and peered down at it. "It went into seizures..." He looked up at us. "Is there any chance that our bite is venomous?"

He looked around at the dozens of resting dragonets who were watching him. One of the first dragonets shrugged. "We bit those scientists a few times, and they all lived."

"Hmmm... True."

A scarlet female shook her wings out. "Well, I am simply glad that it is dead."

My eyes widened as a terrifying thought occurred to me, and I lifted my head in sudden worry. I said, "It is dead... But what are the Kymari going to think when they find it like this? It is too big to move or hide, and we aren't too far from one of the larger walking trails."

My eyes met numerous other wide-eyed gazes. If the Kymari figured out that we were responsible for this kill, then they could reasonably assume that we could harm them or their children. That would be very bad.

*      *      *

I waited high in a tree. My view was almost completely obscured by leaves. A scarlet dragonet was lying beside me on a branch. We had volunteered to come here early this morning and skip the Morning Song to see what the Kymari's reaction would be. Missing the Morning Song had been torturous.

My ear tufts flattened as I silently watched two Kymari approaching where the creature's body laid. They rounded the corner, and the moment the one spotted the charred carcass, he dropped into a fighting crouch as he drew his weapons. The second one quickly mirrored his actions.

They quickly realized that the creature was dead. One used his radio, but I couldn't quite make out his deep soft voice. They remained where they were, weapons still drawn as they slowly scanned the area around them.

Mere minutes later, a flying shuttle dropped into the clearing and heavily armored guards got out. They approached the creature cautiously and inspected it. A dozen gathered around the creature talking while several others cautiously checked the area and came up empty. None bothered checking the thin branches high in the canopy, although I was still glad that we were invisible behind this many leaves.

Drake's voice entered my mind. "I saw a shuttle head in your direction. What was their reaction? Should we expect any fallout from this?" He had been using the general mindlink, although he had directed the question at me.

I sent a mental image of the scene below. "They are not impressed that this creature is here. They call it a sicora. From what I am hearing, it shouldn't be on this planet at all, and its presence has them somewhat on edge. Apparently, it is an extremely dangerous animal that has a high tendency to attack anything that moves. By the way, its venom is deadly; if we hadn't killed it, they would have."

The scarlet beside me chimed in, "Thankfully, they don't suspect us. They think that the burns are previous injuries that it obtained on whatever ship it might have stowed away on. They believe that it died from the aftereffects of the burns. We might want to keep out of sight though, they are planning numerous patrols across both the city and the parks in case there are more out there."

I felt Drake's sigh of relief. He said, "At least we aren't on their radar; that is the best news I have heard all day. Everyone is in more remote areas at the moment, but we will take care to keep a low profile."

I commented dryly, "Don't bother waiting for us. It will be some time before this group leaves, and I don't think we dare move until then. They are on high alert, and any noise could have weapons pointed at us."

He chuckled in light humor. "Enjoy your vacation then."

I suppressed the desire to snort at his response. "How does hiding in a tree above a group of heavily armed aliens count as a vacation in any way?"

Drake's amusement was clear, although he didn't respond. I glanced at my companion. "Might as well get comfy. We could be here for some time."

She was stretched out on a branch and half-way opened up one eye to regard me in amusement. "I am already comfy. Once this bunch leaves, then I can actually relax."

I chuckled lightly as I curled my neck so I could rest my chin on my hands. I kept half an eye on those milling around below as I relaxed in the early morning sunlight.

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Here is a picture of a sicora, beautifully made by @valdtrift 

And @DiamondWillowTree made this lovely picture of a sunburst berry vine.