The falcon's daughters

Chapter 2

Many were the ones who had lost their lives among Morat'x's treacherous peaks. Carefully they followed the paths that had been created by wind and rain for centuries. They wandered in the mountains for two days before reaching a crossroad. The panther cubs who this far had agreed on where they should go suddenly wanted to go in different directions. Deó, the white one, wanted to take the lower road while the black Dorcha wanted to take the upper road. After a little pondering, the man decided that they would follow the lower road as Deó was the oldest of the two. The remaining winter snow covered large parts of the road she had chosen and the cubs carefully placed their paws on the new white stuff that was covering the ground. Satisfied with finding the mountain under the snow, they continued the journey. After turning around a large boulder on the path, Deó suddenly stopped. It twitched in her nose as she sniffed loudly in the air before setting off as fast as her small legs could carry her.

- Deó wait!

The man called for her before he and Dorcha started running but the little panther didn't listen. He heard the cracking sound a mere second before she stepped through a c***k that lay hidden beneath the snow. A chilling scream was heard as she fell and he flung himself forward. His hand fluttered in the air and he threw himself off the edge when a new cracking sound was heard. The ground collapsed in front of his feet, revealing a deep gorge. Cautious he took a  step forward and looked down into the gorge. Below them, an underground river raged and with a sigh he realized the truth. Deó was lost. There was no chance that a small panther like that would survive such a fall. A loud roar was heard, but this time it came from Dorcha who was rushing to the edge. He threw himself down to the ground and managed to grab one of her legs before she reached the edge. Desperately, the little panther struggled to get loose and he pulled her into his arms and held her close to him. A rumbling noise was heard and the ground began to shake under his feet. He quickly pulled away and in front of them they saw the ground collapse and how a massive ravine was now in its place. Dorcha burrowed her head into his chest. They stood there for a while before she pulled herself out of his arms and down on the ground. She tilted her head and looked at the ravine that had taken her sister. The furry ears moved as she listened tense. Her body was trembling in the wind and she turned to go. After taking a few steps, she stopped and looked back. He followed her and they went back to the crossroad and onto the upper road. She carefully avoided putting her paws on the patches of snow that remained on that path. Instead, she climbed up and walked on a narrow ledge. She stopped and leaned her head from side to side as she tightened her ears and listened. Her agile body flew through the air as she jumped down from the ledge and ran along the bare stone to a small bundle that lay further down the path. He followed her and saw how she walked around the bundle. She turned her head as she looked at it and gently pushed at it with a paw. The man was shocked when a gurgling sound was heard.

- A child! Who would leave a child in the middle of the mountains?

He looked around as he picked up the child but there was no trace of who could have left it. The child burst into a bubbling laugh and he looked down at a pair of green eyes. He sat down on the ground and placed the child on his outstretched legs as he wrapped up the worn cloth in which the child was wrapped. The child was a girl and apart from being cold and skinny she had no injuries. On her left hip, a brown mark in the shape of a flying falcon glowed clearly against her pale skin. A cold wind swept through the mountains and he quickly wrapped her in the fabric again, holding her tightly against him. Dorcha climbed to his knees and looked at the child before she lay down close to the little girl.

- Is that why you wanted to come here? To find the baby? How did you know she was here?

He looked at the child, who had fallen asleep in his arms, and then on to the panther, who put a protected paw on the little one's stomach and closed her eyes.

- I guess that is one way to say that we should rest before heading back. You are right as usual little one. We need to rest.

He saw how the dusk was rapidly sinking past the mountains and the rocks cast dark shadows on the ground. With a sigh, he leaned back against the cliff behind him and put some of his cape over the child and Dorcha. The heat from the two small bodies soon caused him to sink into sleep.

“A sadness echoed through the wind and he looked up at the blue sky. High up among the clouds hovered a falcon. Circling it glided through the air as if it were looking for something. He followed it with his gaze as it quickly began to dive. Gracefully it landed on a low bush and jumped down to the ground. It jumped to a bundle on the ground and gave out a low scream. As he drew closer he saw that the bundle was a child wrapped in a piece of cloth. The falcon looked at him with sparkling eyes and jumped a few steps back. He went up to the child and picked it up. A soft female voice was heard in his head.

- Take good care of the child. She will need your love and your protection. A hard life awaits her. You have to teach her to defend herself if she is to survive. Take her to the islands. She will be safe there. Her name is Kit. She is part of my legacy. I will leave her in your care until the time is right.

The falcon's green eyes were filled with pain and sadness as it looked at the child. It flew up and sat on his arm and lightly stroked its beak against the girl's cheek. A tear followed the beak before it fell on the child's pale skin and the falcon emitted a loud scream as it lifted from his arm and disappeared into the sky. He remained silent and held the child tightly to his heart. "