Everything ached. Her legs, her head, her body. She didn't want to move, all she wanted to do was rest. She didn't know how long it had been since she'd been unconscious, but from how stiff she felt, it had probably been a very long time.
Which means time I've wasted laying here when I should be strong and keep searching, a part of Dune's brain ordered. But she didn't feel like it. Everything hurt.
She heard voices coming from somewhere, echoing against walls. Dune tried shifting herself, but it only sent jolts of pain dancing through her body. The feeling of dried mud and leaves splattered and spread across her scales was easy to define. She decided to stay still and listen to the footsteps coming into the cave she was.
"I swear, she didn't mean it!" Arche's voice said. He really sounded upset.
"If she didn't mean it, then why did she still attack and hurt Unne?" said an unfamiliar voice. His voice sounded soothing and intimidating at the same time. Dune thought this must be an authority figure, or possibly the father of the moemoea she attempted to kill.
Arche's tail brushed against her's. "Dune has never been outside the Carrion Desert before. I don't know why she's out here, but whatever the reason is, I'm going to help her. Besides, how bad can it be?"
Dune felt a pang of guilt. She really should have told Arche why she was out wandering the plains in the first place.
"Please, Indigo. I can't let you kill her!" Arche begged. "Unne is still alive and hurt, but you hurt her more than she hurt him. I mean, look at her. She's half covered in mud to heal the sores you gave her."
Indigo and Arche sat in silence for a long time. Dune could feel their eyes imprinting right on her. Someone sighed. "We still have to bring her in for trial," Indigo said. "Herd law for anyone who dare attempts attack one of the calves."
Trial? Dune thought. She had never heard of trials before. She quickly assumed this was a herd species thing.
"Then I'll be obliged to defend her," Arche said. He put one of his talons on hers carefully. "I don't want to lose her. She already means too much to give up."
Dune could almost feel a smile creeping across her face and her heart. Was this how she acted toward Aire without even noticing? Yes, she was defending her from the end of the word. Yes Aire meant too much to her to give up. Yes she didn't want to lose Aire. But Dune knew there was no way Aire would love her more than a best friend. But if Arche did love her that way, would she give up her relationship with Aire and become mates with a regular?
She had to get up. Just thinking about Aire made her realize why she was all the way out here. Dune forced her body to suck up the pain. She ignored the painful sensations her body was signaling her to do. She slowly began to see the area around her. She was in a cave lighted with orange crystals that grew from the walls. Arche and Indigo, she guessed, were in the cave with her.
Arche saw her and gasped. "Dune!" he shouted, coming over to allow her to put her weight on him. "Don't you ever do that again! Moemoea herds always have protectors nearby. And don't start getting up yet, you're still healing."
Indigo scoffed and gave her a look that she wished wasn't so terrifying. Dune sat down and let out a breath of air she didn't know she was holding.
"You still have some explaining to do," Indigo said. "Like why you are in a land totally new, and why you are attacking my herd."
"Like I said, she was hungry!" Arche hissed at him. "But why are you out here if you've always lived in the desert?"
A white and blue female moemoea poked her head in. Everyone stared at her. "Herd Leader Indigo," she said with a bow. "The trial for the attacker is set. Whenever you are ready." Then she left. Indigo turned his head to Dune, who was still giving the moemoea a fierce glare.
"You can explain your reasons during your held trial, Dune. Now come, we must not waste time deciding your fate."
"Wait, she's still not healed. We can't let her go out now!" Arche disagreed. Indigo scowled at him, and Dune was worried and shocked that Arche had got down into a bow.
Indigo fluffed his fur coat. "If she waits any longer than two minutes, she will be held here and forced to be killed under the moon to cleanse her of her actions. I don't want that to happen, but those are the only two options." With that, Indigo marched out toward the Ancient lake, which took Dune to realize after her vision was brought back.
Arche helped Dune up as they went outside. Everyone was staring at them, mainly at her. "Hey," Arche said, grabbing her attention. "I've been in the same situation because of the same reason. If you tell the truth, they may let you live. I'll be your defendant, but Unne's mother and father may try and get you killed."
Dune nodded and sat down once they reached the courtyard. The moemoeas had dug a small hole in the mud for Dune to sit in. She carefully sat down, wrapping her tail around her talons and looked around at the angry herd of 12 to 18 members, all of the capable of killing her. Arche sat on the farthest left side of the herd, looking at Dune with a worried expression.
"Fellow moemoeas, herd members, and our... knarliki guest," Indigo announced, stating Arche with disgust. "For a second time, one of our herd calves have been attacked. And ironically, a knarliki."
"SandSwept knarliki," Dune referred herself, wanting to stay that way.
Indigo ignored her. "She will be held accounted of trying to kill Unne, the calf of Breel and Sanza." He flicked his tail at an angry couple of moemoeas with the calf she tried to kill. "Dune," he continued. "How do you plead?"
"Not guilty." Dune replied. Everyone in the herd grumbled in disagreement.
"Alright. Sanza, please step forth." Indigo ordered, and the female stepped up to her hole in the ground and sat down. She gave Dune a look that stung with guilt like a beezu. Sanza was a really dark red moemoea, and that was that. Her tail feathers seemed to be worn out though, as if she had constantly been using them for something. "Sanza, please share your reason; should Dune be killed or spared?"
"Killed at all costs!" She bellowed, and everyone cheered her on.
Dune looked over at Arche, trying to signal him to get her out of here, but he just shook his head. There was no escaping.
"Dune," Indigo started, turning his head toward her. "Why did you attack Unne?"
"I was hungry, and Arche said that there were no plants in the plains." Dune answered. She looked at the moemoeas. She could tell that the majority of them agreed. There was no food in the plains, but a few still muttered that it wasn't acceptable to kill a baby moemoa.
"Very well," Indigo said. "Another question. If you are referred to as SandSwept, are you an inhabitant of the Carrion Desert?"
Dune nodded. "Was an inhabitant, but now I-"
"Then why did you leave your lands to come to the plains? Was it to hunt down everything like all of Igiris's old followers did?" Gasps came from the crowd, and Dune saw Sanza sneak off to protect her calf.
"Because I'm trying to save my friend and Sonaria from total extinction!" Dune blurted out. Now everyone was silent, even Arche, who was giving Dune the most interested and scared look ever.
Indigo glared at her like she had tried to bite an aholai and left the poison spreading. Now everyone was starting to panic. Arche stood up. "Wait, who is your friend, and what total extinction? Dune, you have to tell us!" Indigo nodded and raised his front hoof as a gesture to expain.
"Alright fine!" Dune shouted. "My friend Aire, who is a pero ghibli, killed Igiris and claimed his oasis and his followers but she forgot to kill Igiris's totally power hungry vin'rou friend and now he's probably working on trying to unleash this super strong creature from the dimension of Daimona to wipe out oasis and probable the whole world we live in! And I'm trying to find that vin'rou and kill him my-"
"SAR'HINGARO?"
Everyone turned to see a hemokai, black and blood red, standing over a tier one carcass, giving Dune the most horrified expression a lizard could express. "WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!" she shouted, running away in a panic and leaving his body behind.
Just that hemokai panicking screaming 'The end is near!' made the whole herd into a way worse panic than before. Calves were running around and shouting panics. Indigo looked at Dune, then at his herd. "SETTLE DOWN!" Indigo shouted. Everyone stood in place. "I have decided Dune's fate for her trial."
Everyone sets back down. Dune is looking at Indigo with a nervous furrow in her brow. She didn't have to look at the herd to see they were piercing their gaze right through her scales, especially Arche.
"I have decided that Dune will live to see another day if we wish to do so as well," Indigo announced. He turned his head toward Dune, glared at her for a moment, then said, "The trial has ended. Herd dismissed." All the moemoeas began to seperate. Sanza and Breel still gave Dune looks of hatred before they led Unne away with their tails.
Arche ran to Dune and wrapped his front legs around Dune's neck. "Thank the aeries above you won!" He said. The two were separated by Indigo, who nodded at them both and tilted his head at the waterfall. He then walked toward the water and started swimming across the pond and behind the waterfall. When his feathery tail was finally swallowed by the rushing water, Arche went ahead and followed.
Dune was hesitant to follow when Arche began swimming across and walking through the waterfall. But if this was important, then she really didn't want to get on Indigo's bad side again, so she followed, dipping herself into the cold water, this time, her body submerged from the neck down. She slowly swam across, feeling the water wave and ripple uncomfortably against her scales.
When she made it across, Dune struggled to climb the ledge that was behind the waterfall, which felt even worse on her than the swim across. Dune saw a teal claw out for her, and grabbed it, which then she was pulled out of the water.
"Thanks," Dune said, shaking water off her sand-colored scales.
"Don't mention it," Arche said, but not in a friendly way. He seemed... hurt.
"Ahem, if I may have both of your guy's attention," Indigo interrupted. "I am only letting Dune off easy because she's the friend of the new ruler of Skeleton's Mesa, and I don't want to get involved with a lord." Indigo looked down his snout at Dune. "But if we want to keep Sonaria safe, I want information on the vin'rou and the whole story of Sar'Hingaro.
Dune nodded and explained the whole story about Gher, the history of Sar'Hingaro, and the dimension of Daimona. When she was finished, she looked at Arche, who felt betrayed all the way to his tailtip.
Indigo blinked at Dune then rubbed his head with his front hoof, like he'd had his mind was erased and suddenly returned all at once. "Urgh, that's a lot of information to take in," he grumbled. "And this... Gher. He's looking for how to open this portal?"
"Yes," Dune replied. 'Very dangerous, like a mini Igiris. Wants to kill Aire at all costs, and I'm going to stop him."
"Dune," Arche finally spoke. "Why didn't you tell me any of this when we first met?" He said, standing up and giving he a disappointed look.
Dune stood up and glared at him. "Because for the hundredth time, none of this concerned you!"
Arche stood taller, looking more intimidating than ever. He walked over and came only inches away from Dune's face. "I don't care, I'm coming with you."
"Why?" Dune shouted. "Why won't you leave me? I'm the one walking into danger. I'm the one looking for a power-hungry murderer! I'm the one who's going to end up dying for my friend, so why do you care about what I do?"
"Because I care about you!"