#wildfaewhump

CW: aftermath of explosion, impalement, mild gore, field surgery 

Titan Guard tag list: @whipper-whumper, @nightly-whump, @why-not-whump-it, @yet-another-heathen, @kixngiggles, @angst-art-writing (let me know if you’d like to be tagged!)

Lexus’ eyes fluttered open against the smoke and ash hanging in the air. The world around her felt undefined, like she was trapped in an endless dream. A harsh ringing filled her ears as she tried to focus on her surroundings. All she could see was the rising smoke from fires dotting rubble, growing in intensity as she lay on the ground looking at the rocky ceiling.

For a moment, she couldn’t recall what it was that caused this carnage. She drifted through a haze with the smoke in the air. Her head rolled to the side, and she saw movement against the flames. Even with her undefined vision, it seemed rushed and panicked. Her body shifted slightly, and she was met with sudden pain and fatigue. A moan escaped her throat and she remembered.

An explosion. A bomb left by Diçian soldiers and set off once they made their escape out of this old missile silo. They were so focused on fighting, no one registered the hidden threat in time. The others, who else had been with her? Byruk, Lulan, Prash, Lylimeph, she couldn’t remember how close they were to the blast. She had lost track of Koladi and Alek during the fighting. Dosair and Hōdek had been right next to her, and it was Dosair who spotted the explosive mere moments before it went off. He tried to push them both out of the way.

How long has it been?

Lexus groaned against the ringing and pounding in her head. She had to get up and make sure the others were okay. They could get attacked again at any moment any might not stand a chance against it. Her hands shifted against the ground to find her bearings before pushing herself up. A deep, overwhelming pain shot through her almost immediately and she fell back to the ground, letting out a strangled scream. Her head turned in a shaky motion and she saw it. A large metal spike sticking up through her thigh, her silver blood coating the end as it punctured through the burned remains of her armor. She reached a shaky hand out to brush away the dirt and rocks collected on the exposed scorched skin. Now seeing the wound, agony began to blind her.

“Over here!” The words were barely audible over the ringing and Lexus’ own screaming. The shadowy movement from before came closer to her, kneeling down next to her head and leg. Her head rolled back up towards the ceiling, and she saw Lulan’s face looking down at her. There were bruises and bleeding cuts on his face, but he seemed fine otherwise. His hand sneaked under her head to keep her steady, worry spread across his face. Lexus’ mouth gaped open as she tried to breathe amidst the screams.

“Hold on, Lexus…” Lulan’s voice seemed distant and faint above her. “You’re gonna be okay. Just—Just hold on. Hey, medpack!”

Please, it hurts… She couldn’t form the words she wanted, painful moans being the only sounds she could make. They were caught dry in her throat, frozen as she felt a cold dread flooding over her. She lifted her head, Lulan helping her, to look at the wound again. The other figure by her side was Byruk, who was already working at cutting back the metal in her leg. There was so much blood already. A sudden thought occurred to her, and tears flooded her eyes.

I could die like this… I don’t want to die… Em, please… I don’t want to die…

“Here!” She saw Talic rush to Byruk’s side, a medpack ready in his hands. She looked up at him, eyes pleading, begging him to keep her alive. He locked eyes with her and gave her a worried smile, but a smile nonetheless.

“Alright, we’ve got to be quick,” Talic spoke to Byruk and Lulan, “Steady her, then lift on three. Ready? One…”

All other noise blocked out of her ears from the ringing and screaming of her own voice. She felt her body shift up and over, wrenching her leg off the metal where it began to bleed in a steady stream. The cold seemed to take her faster now as she felt the compression of the medpack over her wound. It stopped the bleeding and began to numb the pain with time. Lexus felt her consciousness begin to drift, her breath turning to short gasps within a few minutes.

“Get her back, now!” Talic instructed to Lulan as he secured the medpack tightly. “Byruk, help me find the others.”

realtsolais

---

Normally, a small landside leaving someone stranded on a cliff ledge wouldn’t be much of an issue. Most people bearing wings would be able to just fly back up to safety and be on their way home without so much as missing a beat.

Willow’s wings have kindly been described as stout, fluffy, and even cute--but the fact is, they are not suited to flight. He can barely even glide with a good stiff breeze. And now here he is, stuck ten feet below steady land, clutching his satchel close and desperately watching the sun set.

“Hello?” he calls out, voice echoing through the canyon.

No response. He tucks his wings close against his body, under his shawl. It gets cold at night, after the desert’s baking heat, and he is not prepared to sit out under the stars. And if a flying beast, a gryphon or wyvern, was to pass by, and see a plump, stranded snack?

Well.

He won’t think about that.

He takes a deep breath and sits down, shifting as close to the rock wall as he dares, watching the moon rise. At least it’s nearly full, and it won’t be completely dark--wait, was that a shadow? A night messenger? “Hey!” he calls out, lurching to his feet. “Excuse me!”

The shadow keeps going, then stops, large wings flapping soundlessly against the starry sky. A face turns to him, and Willow gulps nervously as he sees the glinting, reflective eyes of a predator. Maybe a fae, or maybe something else, but he’s got to risk asking for help now that he’s got their attention. “Please, I’m stuck down here, I can’t--I can’t fly.”

The shadow blinks once, slowly, then turns and drifts towards Willow on huge black wings. He tenses, then breathes a sigh of relief at the sight of plantigrade legs in trousers and boots. He looks up at his possible rescuer as they land. Even in the moonlight, it’s hard to see much about them--pale skin, jet-black hair, wings blacker than shadow--and bright yellow eyes. Not a fae, but maybe “something else” is just a strange human.

“Thank you,” he says, breathing a sigh of relief as he steps forward. “I can pay you back for helping me--”

A gentle shake of the head, and strong arms are suddenly around his waist. Willow yelps and holds on tight as his rescuer launches up into the air with just one beat of those massive wings, carrying him a safe distance from the edge of the cliff before depositing him by a path.

“Goodness!” Willow breathes, laughing a bit and looking up at his rescuer. “You don’t mess around, do you? Thank you so much.”

The stranger shrugs and turns to leave again, spreading out his wings. “Wait!” Willow calls. “Wait, please, what’s your name?”

Hey there! Thank you so much!

27. Do they have any cool scar stories?

For Henry? Unfortunately no. He only has two scars — one on his upper lip from when Mariana broke a wine glass against his face, and another to the side of his knee that he doesn’t remember getting. I guess the one from Mariana is kind of cool, but it left such a small mark that it isn’t worth telling anyone about. Carter doesn’t even notice until the first time they kiss and he feels it.

24. What do they think they’re good at but aren’t?

Arguing. His court case gave him far too much confidence in that regard.

33. Do they have a signature accessory?

Fixing what he broke is the purpose to which Talvos bends his life.

A trained, heavily conditioned reluctant whumper, turned runaway whumpee with his beloved, who has forgiven him for reasons he may never understand - it’s a moodboard for Talvos, by @wildfaewhump.