[DotW] In the Blink of an Eye

One mistake. One mistake caused by that wretched outcast. All she wanted to do was help him, to give him someone to talk to. It was all she ever really wanted to do with anyone, and it was in her nature to seek out where she could provide it. He was bitter, he always was when she saw him, but maybe it could have been changed, maybe there was a different side to him. He was hurt, and she wanted to at least start a positive relationship by offering to relieve him of his pain. But he just had to be so ignorant and careless.

When she accidentally consumed the plant, Daya had ran faster than the wind to the river, desperate to wash the plant out of her mouth. But by then, it was far too late. The majority had entered her stomach and was being absorbed into her system, and whether it was fear or the symptoms already beginning to take place, her level of nausea was unbelievable.

Now, she sat hunched over in the shadows of her den, parts of her spine stretching her skin and standing out amongst all the fur. Discolored drool slowly fell from her lips, dripping onto the cold dirt. Her eyes, once gold and full of brilliance and life, were now bloodshot and had goopy, greenish globs in the corners, with bags quickly forming underneath them. Her nose oozed mucus, and her body swayed side to side slowly as she became disoriented. Despite her condition, it amazed her how quickly this plant’s poisonous traits weeded into a wolf’s system and broke them down.

Her eyes went wide suddenly as her stomach churned, and soon a puddle of vomit had formed on the ground. Glancing down to the disgusting sight, Daya inhaled sharply, which was more of a strained wheeze at this point. It was not runny or the hideous shade of yellow like it normally was. No, it was thick and a deep crimson. Blood. Fear made her heart thump at a fast rate, one she could hear like a beating drum in her ears. This was no ordinary illness. This one had the potential to kill her. This one, without a doubt, would kill her unborn children if nothing was done.

---

He’d followed her out of the den when she ran off, and Renyk had even followed the sour scent of fear that she left in her sprint towards the river. He hesitated. He did not belong here among these wolves. It was so painfully obvious that their culture, their ways, were beyond his comprehension. He hated to think of himself as stupid, for he never had, but he did feel stupid. Ignorant. None of it by his own volition. It was just a cultural divide. But the healer ate something she should not have, and the fleeting thought crossed his mind; it was your fault. He dismissed it quickly. It was not his fault. Not in the least. She was a healer. She should have known what she was doing. How was he supposed to know some dead leaves were special and some weren’t?

Renyk hovered just away from the main densite. He had chosen not to follow her to the river, not yet, and when he finally saw her return, he lowered his large ears and frowned. Dayanara looked very, very ill. His chest felt tight. He was not heartless. Cold, distant, yes, but not heartless.

He followed her into her den, his steps slow and quiet, uncertain if he should be following after what had happened. What he saw then disturbed him a great deal. She was sitting, but hunched over, as if sagging under a great weight, and before her was a foamy puddle of blood that reeked of stomach bile and poison.

Staring at her, Renyk knew there was nothing he could do for her. All for a cut paw, he thought. What a waste.

“I’m going to find Nadia,” he said.

---

Her chest clenched and twisted, lost with what to do. She had no herbs to help her through this, she was in no condition to fetch the necessary materials, and no one, even Navindru who had accompanied her on a few outings to restock her plants, would know what to look for without her eyes. She wasn’t sure, really, what there was to do, other than calling for help from another pack.

She had not heard Renyk approach the den, not until his voice echoed against the walls and rang into her ears like an obnoxious siren, blaring over and over relentlessly until a migraine formed. Daya gritted her teeth, wincing as she turned away from the prying eyes. “No,” She said quietly in between breaths. “Get Navindru.” She finally met the shadowy wolf’s face, and her expression contorted into all sorts of emotions; pain, anger, pleading, disgust, sorrow. She wanted to blame him so badly. She wanted to blame all of this on his stupid, stupid mistake. But deep down, she knew she couldn’t. How could he have known? They had not formally met before, they never made small talk or even gestured to one another when passing by. He did not know how particular and obsessive she was about the organization of her plants.

No, this was all on her. Had she not been so dramatic about it all, had she not overreacted, had she actually paid any attention to her actions, she wouldn’t be in this situation right now.

Her legs trembled, fatiguing quickly with having to hold up her body weight. They gave out, and she collapsed in a heap on the ground, part of her cheek fur landing in the bile.

---

The dark wolf’s red-amber eyes widened as the healer collapsed, and he spun around and raced from the den. She was probably dying and he was running away from her to find her mate. The very thought of her dying opened a wound that never fully healed. That gaping wound in his soul that festered with hateful, bitter pus was raw and bleeding again. His heart raced. No matter how bitter he was, how cold he was, how much he seemed to have nothing but disdain for this pack, nobody deserved the pain he endured.

He didn’t know where Navindru would be, and his eyes flicked back and forth as his nose sorted through various scents.

“Navindru! Navindru!” He called.

He hoped he wouldn’t find him and return to find a dead she-wolf. That would be just wonderful. He hadn’t made much of an impression among these wolves as it was. If he ended up believed to be a murderer who knew what would happen. Though, knowing this pack, they would undoubtedly just exile him. An eye for an eye didn’t really suit them.

---

The timing was impeccable. The tawny male had just padded down the slight slope into the den-site, head lifted and ears pricked, as a voice shouted out his name. The sharp severity of the caller’s tone immediately prompted concern. The hare in his jaws was quickly placed on the ground to be tended to later as he trotted towards the source, a dark blue-grey male by the name of Renyk.

“Yes? What’s wrong?” The Lynx Totem asked, his own voice edged with worry. He could not judge much from the other male’s expression, but no one went about yelling like that without some unfortunate reason. His gaze narrowed in thoughtful confusion, subconsciously attempting to pick up any vibe from the other wolf. His nose caught the faintest scent of Dayanara. Yet, a few other scents of different packmates wrought about his nose, and he couldn’t pinpoint whether it had just blown by or been collected in passing.

---

It wasn’t news he wanted to give, but the situation was dire. If Dayanara died… well maybe Navindru would have a chance to say goodbye. But maybe Navindru knew a way to help her. These wolves were more sophisticated than he was. Maybe, just maybe, they had an answer.

“It’s… your mate. She’s ill. She needs you,” he didn’t want to waste time trying to explain everything. Maybe once they got to the den. He turned around and sprang away. “She’s in her den!” He called over his shoulder as he raced back to the den that only mere minutes before Daya had insisted he follow her into to help him when he had not wanted it. He hadn’t been friendly to her at all. She hadn’t deserved it. She didn’t deserve any of this. For wanting to help.

He skidded to a halt outside the den. He didn’t want to go in after Navindru. He didn’t belong in there.

---

Her ears perked up at the commotion that began to stir outside, breath shaky as she recognized Navindru’s voice. Clenching her jaw, Daya shoved a paw into the ground with a surprising amount of strength, one by one, until she was standing on all four legs. Well, sort of. Her eyes stared off at the bumpy wall of her den, vision fuzzy from the sudden rise, and her body swayed, stumbling sideways a few steps.

The chocolate she-wolf turned to look at the opening into the small cave, the only thing that let light pour into the dark hole. She could hear approaching pawsteps, but who’s, she didn’t know. “Nav..” She called, but her voice was hushed, barely above a whisper. Holding back a scream, Daya took a few steps towards the light, her strides gradually becoming more steady. She was just a few steps away from the opening when a twisting pain in her stomach knocked her back. Daya collapsed onto her haunches, her body leaning to the right, propped up on a single leg.

“Nav!” She yelled, mustering whatever strength she could to do so. Her voice was raspy, and probably comprehensible, so she was thankful she only had to say one thing at that volume.

---

His eyes stretched wide. Renyk’s words turned his innards to ice, nearly freezing him in place. His jaw opened, as if to speak, but nothing came out. Instead he lurched after the blue-grey wolf, scrambling way too fast to reach the healer’s den where his beloved worked. Panic bubbled in his chest. His paws skidded on the ground as he neared, frantic eyes fixing upon the figure in the mouth of the den.

“Daya!” His voice was high-pitched with alarm. He flew towards her, instantly pressing his body against her. She was trembling. He could tell her balance was off. Something was very, very wrong. Heart thudding, he glanced back towards where the other male stood just outside, lingering in uncertainty. “What happened?” He demanded, asking the both of them but expecting Renyk to answer first. Dayanara’s weak calls wrenched his heart. He swung his head around and placed it over hers, ears pulled back.

Gentle rumbles rolled from his throat, little attempts to comfort the ailing she-wolf. Please, please be okay, his thoughts screamed, whirling like thousands of bats in his mind.

---

Daya felt the slightest bit of relief as Navindru came racing into the den, comforted purely by his presence. If only him being here could completely cure her of whatever hell that had been set upon her.

Her eyes felt heavy then and her body sunk, as if the few steps she had walked was really hours spent running at top speed and her body could no longer handle any weight. She looked to Nav though when he commanded to know what had happened, his question seemingly directed more towards Renyk.

“It was my fault, Nav.” She started, voice breathy and weak. “I got distracted while… While trying to help R-Renyk.” The healer had to take a moment to catch her breath, unable to go more than a couple seconds in between. “I ate a poisonous plant.”

Daya coughed, and with it, a combination of mucus and blood were spat out of her mouth. Her heart thumped again, pounding at an unhealthy rate. “Nav, the pups…” The wolf whispered with worry, eyes meeting with her mate’s. She didn’t care at this point about her life, she cared about their children’s.

---

His attention flitted back to the dark brown she-wolf at the sound of her pitiful murmur. A low grunt accented his subtle change of position, trying to support her as best he could. A poisonous plant. His stomach tightened, and he glanced towards Renyk for a moment, then back to Dayanara. As she retched, he curled his tail around her back, a soft whimper escaping his maw. Specks of blood dotted the mess she’d brought up, lacing fear through his heart.

He met her gaze, torn by the sickly dullness of her golden eyes. He managed a tiny nod, his thoughts racing still. Daya was the only Elk Totem they had. She.. she couldn’t heal herself, not like this. This was serious. “We’ll get you help,” He murmured soothingly, surprised by how well he managed to settle his alarm. “I’ll talk to Nadia. Remember when the Heylians came by searching for help for their plague? We can do the same.” It was the only option, right? No one else in Chandor had medicinal skills.

“Maybe...maybe Heyl itself can assist.” He thought of Impala and Oden and felt a rush of hope. Yes, that was an idea. Anywhere the two white wolves had gone would be a good place. Heyl was a kind pack as far as Navindru knew, and surely they would have the skills to help Daya.  

Gently he brushed his muzzle against hers. “It’ll be okay.” He stated firmly, hoping with all the hope he had that it was true.

---

Seeing the two of them together, Daya ill and possibly dying, Renyk felt all of his bad memories well up inside of him. Antares. Even before the fire, there was something wrong with her. He’d been told it affected the females of their line. She had been doomed from the start, but the fire took her in the end. And Renyk was always meant to break his heart and end up alone. He hated it.

Pups? He frowned. Would this mistake cost her and her pups their lives? He turned away. He didn’t know what else he could do for either of them.

“It’ll be okay.”

Would it be? Really? Or were they just reassuring words? Renyk sincerely wished he still had his love to lie to reassuringly.

“I’ll find Nadia and bring her here,” he said in a voice that betrayed nothing. “You should stay with her.” Don’t waste a second of your precious time.