[Skeetzybug]

“A marked?” Zane asked, padding closer as his eyes narrowed. The other dog tried to turn his head away in a futile attempt to hide the mark, but it was as obvious as the scarred land they stood on. “In royal territory?”

“I didn’t realize it,” The captive responded quickly. His voice was sharp, almost practiced, but the tinge of fear was far from hidden. “I was only seeing what happened here. I swear it.” He swallowed hard, eyes flicking rapidly between the two in front of him. “Listen. My name is-”

“We could care less what your name is,” Corva cut him off. Her voice was soft and quiet now, satisfaction sinking into every word as she gazed at him. “You’ll have plenty of time to try and talk your way out of this when we get back to the outpost, sweet thing.” His breath hitched, head moving to follow his eyes now, and he opened his mouth as if to speak again - but Corva was faster. Muzzle already in hand, she slipped the top over his mouth, pulling hard to snap his jaw shut and securing it quickly around the back of his head.

[Skeetzybug]

That finally got a real reaction out of him. He pulled back wildly, legs kicking as he shook his head within her grip. Cursing, Corva flung her other hand out, grabbing at his coat and digging her paws into the ground for traction. She didn’t need to hold on long - the other Crows followed up behind her, Reginald pressing heavy paws on his shoulders while Finnegan and Leolin each grabbed a leg, leaving him flat on the ground again. His chest heaved, other motion stilling at he took in the situation. A few more moments passed, the entire group standing tensely over him, before he seemed to give up, going limp. Corva let Reggie pull him up this time, padding over to Zane and shaking her head.

“Should have let me shock the bastard,” she murmured quietly, looking entirely too smug with the turn of events. Zane sighed, running a hand through his fur again as the group turned.

“Easy, commander,” he replied, moving to stand next to his gryphon again. He set one hand on the saddle, the other rubbing thoughtfully at his own muzzle. “I should think… this is just the beginning.” He heaved himself into the saddle before he looked back at her, dark eyes serious. “Don’t let your guard down. There is more to this than we know.”

[Skeetzybug]

“Are you sure we have to do it this way?” Kimber stood in the small chamber, arms folded as she looked around. There was nothing here but a small table with two chairs, and enough room for a few people to stand around. An electronic contraption was laid over the table, a small monitor on one side and attachments of some sort on the other. “I don’t think he’ll lie to us, Zane. He’s in a bad spot.”

“We can’t take that chance.” The canine was pacing the space between the table and wall, glancing at the door with an air of impatience. He’d been on edge the entire time, bushy tail swaying back and forth in that unsettled way of his. “This isn’t just a border dispute.” He stopped, hands curled in fists at his side as he glanced towards Kimber. “You should’ve seen it. The entire place was.. dead. Overnight.”

[Skeetzybug]

“I’ve seen the reports,” she said softly, ears back as she remembered the description in her head. “I know the severity. I just.. don’t think this is the right way to go about it.”

“I know.” Zane turned, stepping towards Kimber and setting a hand on her shoulder. “You’ve always hated this part.” She hesitated, chewing at the side of her tongue as if to stop herself from saying more. It wasn’t just that, not this time... she didn’t have much more time to debate on it as the door swung open loudly, slamming against the cold stone wall behind it.