FSE

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DISCLAIMER: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

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THE GRYPHON COMPLEX. Chapter 11: Reunion .

We couldn't stand like this forever, of course. Much as I wanted to.

Breaking off our embrace, I leaned back from Pyre, looking him in the face, and smiling broadly at the quirky grin he smiled down at me, and I could feel his rumbling purr vibrating through the clawed hands resting on both my shoulders.

"Umm, nice outfit" he smirked, taking in the combat gear I was still wearing.

I gazed up at his face, replying "Yeah, well it sort of came with the shoes" and he chuckled in reply, before drawing me close again.

Taking the opportunity to look him over, I was shocked at his condition.

Jesus. He looked like shit.

Feathers and fur matted, with clumps missing from each, the skin beneath his blue eyes hung in dark folds to his feathery cheeks. One eye was red; a subconjunctival haemorrhage, my brain dredged up from somewhere. Not necessarily serious, but a reflection of his mistreatment at the hands of his captives. One forearm was heavily bandaged, the white linen soiled from the wound, and he winced as I ran my fingers lightly across the dressing. He also stank... of sweat, and of fear. Knowing how meticulous he normally was about his appearance, and knowing what he must have gone through to reach this state, the haggard look he gave me struck deep, and I felt myself tensing up in fury.

Seeing my muscles tighten beneath his hands, he gripped my shoulders again firmly.

"It doesn't matter" he whispered against me. "You're here now, and it doesn't matter"

I nodded, feeling his breath in my hair, and clutched him to me tightly

But inside, I knew differently.

It did matter. It fucking mattered a lot.

Someone was going to pay dearly for this, I promised.

Sighing, I pulled back enough to give the Professor a smile, which was returned somewhat querulously. He didn't look much better than Pyre, features drawn and haggard, and bandages tight against his gaunt frame. The previous week hadn't been good to him, although he didn't bear the further scars of his captivity as did the gryphon.

"How you doing sir?" I said from within the feathery grasp, Pyre clearly unwilling to let me go anytime soon.

He smiled, a hint of the old determination present for a moment, "Feeling brilliant now, thanks to you I see. Look at you. A bit of a change from the gangly research assistant I employed those months ago"

I sighed, nodding. "You could say that. I'm just glad you're both alive. I feared...."

I could feel Pyre begin to shake, vibrations coursing through his body, as I watched the smile leave the Professors face.

Looking away for a moment, he replied quietly "Yes, David. I think we all feared that" and I nodded at him.

Patting Pyres neck gently, I looked up at his tear filled eyes, wiping the liquid coursing down his cheeks with soft fingers. Lips set tightly, I made a vow to myself, never to let anything like this happen again. In the future, I'd be prepared for anything, and no one would separate us again.

Not if they wanted to keep breathing.

Letting out a sigh, I stepped back from his almost desperate grip, saying softly "We need to get back to the Assembly chambers. Are you both feeling up to it?"

They nodded in unison. Pyre set his shoulders, which had slumped with his distress. Folding his drooping wings onto his back, he stepped aside, before taking his place beside me as I strode back towards the chamber entry. The soldiers pushing the Professors wheel chair looked nervously at the gryphon, but he ignored them all, simply walking close to my side, pressing lightly against me for comfort.

The other soldiers fell into formation behind us, several exchanging confused glances at our contact, obviously wondering what it meant.

Fuck them! Fuck them all, I fumed.

Let them wonder. I was over giving a shit what they thought.

Pausing briefly at the chamber entrance, I set my own shoulders, before pushing through the large timber doors, hearing the voices inside quickly drop into silence.

Until K, letting out a whoop of delight, tore across the floor to throw himself against Pyre, arms around him tightly.

"Hey!!" he said up at the gryphon, who chuckled and patted his back. "Good to see you, buddy!"

Pyre grinned back, replying "You too, arsehole!" and they both began laughing loudly.

Feeling a tap on the shoulder, I turned to the broadly grinning Krynn. "Happy endings, I see" he remarked, before taking in my demeanour. My smouldering anger must have been obvious to him, as his grip tightened, smile dropping from his face. Pulling me forward, he leaned in to whisper into my ear "Yes, I see it too, David. But this is neither the time nor the place, you know that. I'm sorry, but there are much more important things to sort out. He's safe. Remember that."

Staring into his amber eyes, I nodded curtly, before letting out a sigh. Tass relaxed, releasing my arm, and we returned to the pair to offer our congratulations on their release. Mykos brought up the rear, large gryphon grin on his face, before clapping Pyre on the back with a wing. The wince that crossed Pyres face stopped him in his tracks. Mykos froze for a second, smile faltering, before it forced a return to his face.

Features looking grim, the Krynn turned to the waiting assembly, who had been staring at the reunion with shock. I suppose it wasn't every day the chamber hosted not one, but two huge furry feathered monsters, but at least no one bolted for the exit.

Tass spoke up "I think it would be best if we temporarily delayed these discussions until a later time, important or not. Clearly our friends here are in great need of some rest, and to continue at present would be... difficult"

A murmur sprang through the assembled diplomats, some clearly unhappy with the delay. One or two made to object, before the Krynn interrupted again.

Turning a steely eye on those assembled, his gaze finally settled on Chairman Chas. Speaking softly into the room, he explained "Besides, I think it'd be a good opportunity for us to contact my world, and advise them of the situation. Especially as we should do everything to ensure nothing drastic is being planned at home, wouldn't you say? It would be... unfortunate... if we ended up with a... situation... that could have otherwise been avoided, wouldn't it?"

Any objections froze, and the Chairman cleared his throat hurriedly, turning to the assembly and responding "I think this conference can be delayed until tomorrow. We'd all work better with clearer heads, and it has been a long night. I call the assembly into recess, to be resumed tomorrow at 1200. Any objections?"

There were none. Unsurprisingly.

Turning to the guards lining the chamber, he called the captain over, whispering to him hurriedly. I couldn't catch what they exchanged in low voices, but saw the tufted ears of both gryphons perk and twitch in response. Shrugging mentally, I decided it didn't really matter. If it was important, they could fill us in as necessary at a later time.

The captain broke away after nodding to Chas, bringing up his radio to issue urgent orders in a muffled voice. Once complete, he approached us before nodding politely, suggesting we follow him to a place we could get some rest. As Pyre turned, he staggered against me, before being steadied by Mykos's powerful grip. It was clear he was as exhausted as the Professor, so we made haste after the Captain, who took us high into the building to the accommodation wing, setting us up in several suites.

When I was offered a private room, I shook my head, pointing to Pyre and saying "I'm staying with him".

The captain paused for a moment, before a small smile broke his otherwise harsh features, and he led us to a large corner suite, closing the door quietly behind us after we entered.

Thank God. Alone at last!

Turning off the lights, the room illuminated only by the city outside shining through the windows, I dumped the bulk of my gear onto the floor, stripping to shirt and jeans, before turning back to the tired gryphon. Pyre stumbled as he approached the bed, and I moved to help him climb onto the mattress, which creaked alarmingly under him. Dropping in exhaustion, he lay on his side; wings limp behind; and began breathing deeply. Concerned, I ran fingers across his neck, stroking the matted feathers softly, and he cocked an eye at me, sighing, before reaching out and pulling me to him, cuddling my back against his chest.

I wrapped my hands around the muscled arms surrounding my chest, and sighed in reply, asking "It was bad?"

I felt him pause, then nod, before he nuzzled my neck softly. "It's over now, though. Thanks for coming for me David"

I pressed against him, and his arms tighten. "Always, sweetheart."

His breathing deepened, and within a few moments, I felt him drop off to sleep.

It was a long time before I managed to join him in slumber.

_______________________

The next day, I woke to the sun streaming through the windows, and the faint noise of the city traffic in the streets below. Yawning and stretching against the comfortable bulk of the gryphon, I pressed back against the warmth from his feathers, wrinkling my nose at the slightly rank smell emanating from his body.

Clean gryphon good; dirty gryphon bad!

I carefully disentangled myself from his arms, slipping from the bed to stand with my forehead against the glass window, gazing pensively down at the world bustling beneath us. Sighing, I shut my eyes for a moment, considering the crazy situation I'd been thrown into. As far as the masses below were concerned, it was business as usual. They had no comprehension of the drama unfolding far above them, and probably wouldn't care even if they knew.

Tilting my head back from the chill glass, I caught Pyre's reflection in the surface, bulk strewn untidily across the mattress. Hard to believe it was only a little over a fortnight since he tumbled into my life, I mused, staring fondly at his sleeping form. I could hear his faint snoring from my spot in the morning sunlight, feathers gleaming in the warming rays.

I leaned forward again, staring aimlessly into the morning traffic, trying to sort through my inner turmoil. I'd been given a job to do here, and I'd achieved most of it with the release of my friends. But the gryphon was definitely out of the bag now, and the people of this planet were up for a choice; either get with the program and accept the new reality of the existence of the other worlds, or stick their heads back in the sand, pretending it wasn't happening.

I pondered the consequences of both choices, and winced. Since when did anyone on this planet want to believe what was in front of their eyes, when it was easier to simply reject the truth?

I started slightly. More to the point, when did it become "their planet" and not mine?

Perhaps when Pyre was returned to us with the evidence of his mistreatment visible for all to see.

I had to wonder who the real animals were, here.

I heard a fitful stirring behind me, and turned to see Pyre roll onto his back, wings spread beneath him and legs askance, before he stretched with a huge yawn, claws kneading the air above him. Cocking his head towards me, he let out a grin, before his beak gaped in another yawn.

I moved to his side, taking a seat on the bed near his head, and reached across to stroke his neck softly, running a hand through the soft feathers covering his neck. He shut his eyes in bliss, purring under my fingers. I didn't comment as my questing fingers felt the damage to his skin, bruises forming lumps, and the crusts of small cuts marring his flesh underneath the down. Nor did he react to my touch, although I was certain some of them were very sensitive.

I sighed, caressing his forehead and running fingers down his nares to his beak, feeling the warm breath exhaling softly. Leaning down, I placed a kiss on the top, and he opened his eyes, before reaching up with a chuckle and pulling me roughly into his embrace, laughing as I complained loudly in mock anger.

After a while, as we lay together for a moment in silence, I pulled away to stare at his face, and said "Umm, Pyre? You know I love you, right?"

He nodded with a quirky grin, and I continued.

"Umm. Don't take this the wrong way, but you... err... stink."

His eyebrows shot up, and his ears dropped, before he gave a larger crooked smirk.

"Gryphon smell bad?" he said in a doltish voice, and I laughed loudly.

"Couldn't have put it better myself. Let's do something about that, huh?"

He nodded happily, releasing me to clamber from the bed, shaking himself roughly, and settling his feathers straight.

I moved to the door to the suite, slipping out and motioning to one of the waiting guards, who approached with a questioning look.

"Umm, the gryphon needs a bath pretty bad. Do you have any large showers or pools that he could use?"

The soldier pondered for a moment, before replying "Well... There is a large fresh water spa pool upstairs. Should be big enough. I'll see what can be arranged"

I thanked him, and he reached for his mike, before I thought of something else.

"Oh, and would you mind telling Kaynard what's happening? I might need his help"

He nodded, and began relaying instructions through the radio. I smiled my thanks, before returning to the window, where Pyre stood mesmerised, watching the traffic beneath us.

He shook his head for a moment. "Internal combustion engines? Shit, look at the pollution!" and I nodded at him.

"Yeah, another thing these people might learn if they give us a chance"

He cocked his head and looked at me in surprise. "These people? You mean your people?"

Placing both hands on the glass, I stared at the scene beneath.

"No, not any more. They're not my people. You're my people"

He reached across a wing, bringing me carefully against him, and we stood together, watching the world go by.

At least, until I looked up at the building across the street, seeing the large crowd of humans gawking at us from the office tower opposite, some gesturing wildly at us, while others were busily snapping photos on their mobile phone cameras.

Oh shit!

This could get interesting!

Looking up at the gryphon, I caught his attention, pointing out the onlookers staring at us. Thinking he might freak, I was surprised when he instead broke into a huge grin, sat back on his haunches, and began waving at the crowd happily, spreading his wings and showing off to the clearly stunned onlookers.

I couldn't help it.

I started laughing, chest heaving in reply.

Tears running down my face, breathing ragged, I almost dropped to the floor in hysterics, with Pyre's laugh echoing through the room.

Suddenly a wicked thought occurred to me, and I grinned evilly.

Reaching to the gryphon's ear, I grabbed one gently, bringing his face down to mine, and landed a huge smooch on his beaked lips, which he quickly returned with gusto.

After a few seconds, I reached across and drew the curtains across the glass, blocking the view from outside. I dropped to the couch, with Pyre crashing heavily to the carpeted floor before me, as I wrapped my arms around his neck, both of us laughing maniacally.

Which is when, after a knock on the door, K came in wheeling a large cleaner's trolley packed with white towels for Pyres bath.

Taking a look at us, he broke into a grin of his own. Cocking his head at us, he said "Oh crap. What have you done now?" as peals of laughter resounded through the suite.

________________

A little later, the three of us were escorted through the corridors of the building towards the bathing facility holding the spa. K looked at the both of us as if we were crazy, which we probably were, although the smirk that kept twitching at the corners of his mouth belied his true feelings.

"You do realise that shit is going to fly on this, right?" he said, finally unable to hold in his amusement. The two soldiers escorting us had caught the bulk of our conversation, and one was trying to stifle a chuckle, while the other had broke out laughing with us, before quickly resuming his sombre pose.

I looked at Pyre, who shrugged, ears perked forward in amusement.

"Fuck them. Give them all something to jerk off to tonight" he said with a chirp, and the five of us again broke into laughter.

Wiping tears from my eyes as we finally arrived at the bathing facility, I gave a sudden gasp as the room came into view.

It gave opulence a new meaning!

Set up in traditional Japanese styling, tiles gleaming in the subdued lighting, the huge bathing pool stretched over six meters across, reflections scattering on the bamboo screens and delicate sculptures adorning the walls.

"Wow!" K said into the silence. The gryphon snapped his beak shut with a loud click from where it had dropped in amazement, and nodded in agreement.

The two guards retreated to the main hallway, advising us they'd be ready to take us back to our room once we were done. Thanking them both, I shut the opaque glazed door behind them, and returned to Pyre, who had been eyeing the water almost greedily. Letting out a screech, he launched himself into the air with a mighty flap of his wings, to plunge with an almighty splash into the warm water beneath, sending a deluge flooding throughout the room. Drenched from the watery onslaught, I laughed and stripped off, as K rescued the towel trolley from a watery death. Returning with several brushes and a large container of body wash, we began applying the soap liberally to the gryphon, who hummed in contentment.

It took a while, but eventually we'd covered most of his body, the soapy foam dripping in dirty brown streaks down his sides to disperse into the water below. Cautious of his injuries, I gently scrubbed Pyres back fur, before grabbing his tail and brushing along its length with soft strokes. When I felt him freeze, I looked up at the gryphon who had been eyeing me with an eyebrow raised, before he smirked at my embarrassment "Enjoying yourself?"

I nodded with a grin, before throwing a large soapy sponge at his head. He dodged, sending more water across the floor, and causing K to call out from the other side for us to behave, or he'd never be finished!

Once my side was done, with the fur and feathers as clean as we could get them, I returned to Pyres front, taking his forearm in my grip and gently unwrapping the heavy, stained bandage surrounding his arm. Pyre winced as the dressing pulled at the wound, but I finally managed to untangle the knots, staring in distress at the mess beneath.

An area of around a foot up his arm had been denuded of feathers, revealing a gaping sore oozing brackish fluid, clotted with blood, which had been roughly stitched closed. While it looked relatively clean, the skin surrounding the sutures was red and swollen, and I cursed under my breath as I inspected it carefully.

Bringing my eyes to his, which he dropped suddenly, I said "Shit! Why didn't you mention this last night?"

His ears dropped, and he gave a small cry, lowering his head further in distress.

I sighed, reaching up to caress his crest and mane gently. "It's OK, sweetheart. I'm not upset with you. Just with those bastards who did this to you, and left it like this"

His ears perked slightly, and he turned to inspect the wound himself.

"Gunshot. I was lucky it didn't strike bone or artery. They left it like that for days before one doctor was brave enough to enter my cage and clean it up for me. He returned a few times, checking it over and looking for infection. If it wasn't for him, I'd be screwed by now. He was a good guy."

K had been gaping at the wound as I carefully rinsed it with fresh water, before I poked him and asked him to grab a dry towel from the pile. Tearing it into long strips, I carefully wrapped the makeshift dressing around the area, vowing to have this seen to properly as soon as Pyre was dry.

After a final rinsing, Pyre shook himself off thoroughly, showering water throughout the room, which soon began to resemble a disaster area of soaked towels and fluff. As he stood dripping on the tiled floor, K and I grabbed bundles of towels and began the long, laborious process of getting him dry. It took a long time, and most of the towels, but we finally managed to remove enough water to leave him damp, rather than dripping. When searching for towels, K had not been able to find any brushes large enough to work on the gryphon's fur, but Pyre shrugged, saying he'd been seen worse, and it would be fine as is.

Cleaning up the mess as well as we could, I returned to the doorway. At the soldiers polite enquiry, I asked if he could have a doctor or medic waiting for us back at the suite when we returned. He raised an eyebrow, looking through the door at the gryphon, clearly trying to see what the issue was. Spotting the makeshift dressing already turning red, he nodded swiftly, and sent through the request. Returning to the pair inside, I dried myself off as well as I could, before donning my dirty clothes for the return journey to the suite.

Pyre leant over, and sniffed at my top, before wrinkling his nose.

"Human smell bad!" he said, smirking at his wit, and I poked him in the side, before he turned to leave the room, chuckling under his breath.

Smart arse.

_________________________

Waiting at our suite was a well dressed doctor, sporting suit and tie, and with leather case at hand. He introduced himself as Doctor Manning; at least he did so after his wide eyes and gaping mouth returned to a normal size. Pyre rolled his eyes, stating "Isn't it about time people got over that? I don't eat humans! They taste like chicken!" at which K sat back on the couch, chuckling in mirth.

Asking to see the arm, Manning unwrapped my makeshift dressing, before his mouth went tight as he surveyed the wound.

"Neat enough job at the time, but it's turning septic. Lucky you didn't leave this much longer" he muttered, before filling up a syringe with anaesthetic. Suddenly realising he was about to shove a large needle into a huge clawed creature three times his size, he froze, needle paused over the gryphons arm.

Pyre sighed in exasperation. "Just do it already!" he snapped, making the doctor jump, before he injected the anaesthetic into Pyre's arm at several locations around the wound.

Sighing in obvious relief as the medication kicked in, Pyre dropped to his side, wounded arm outstretched, as the doc sat against his flank, carefully removing the stitches from the swollen flesh. Once the last stitch parted, the wound opened, oozing more murky and funky smelling fluid down his arm. Manning probed the wound carefully, assessing the extent of the injury. Cleaning it out thoroughly with disinfectant fluid, he then packed the opening with gauze soaked in antiseptic cream, before covering the area in a clean dressing.

Staring up at the gryphon sombrely, he said "This could still be an issue. I can't suture it closed, due to the inflammation, as they're more likely to burst, or simply become infected again. Ideally, I'd like to get you into theatre and clean this properly, but the bullet is out, and I just don't see that being a possibility. So, we'll keep it clean, change the dressing daily, and keep you dosed up on antibiotics, which I hope you won't have issues with. I'll be back later today to check on how you're going"

Pyre nodded, thanking the physician, and the doc stood up, putting a hand on the gryphon's forearm with a smile. "Hey, it's not often I get to work on someone so unique. Glad to help!"

Leaving the room with a wave of a hand, the three of us found ourselves alone again.

K looked thoughtful, before getting up to enter the kitchenette, pouring three glasses of chilled water which he brought to us. Pyre swallowed his gratefully, and I passed him mine, which caused him to smile as he drank it too. I took the glasses back to the sink, pouring myself another as I washed the used glasses, leaving them to drain on the bench. Hearing a sudden chuckle, I looked up to see K peering through a gap in the closed blinds, before turning to us with a grin.

"Oh dear. You really started something here!" he said, before throwing the blind aside to show us the view.

People.

Wall to wall people.

The entire building opposite; every floor, every window; was packed with people.

I gaped in amazement, turning to Pyre, who was looking at the crowd with disbelief.

"Got yourself a fan club, feather ball!" I taunted, and he grinned, before climbing to his feet, and approaching the glass.

"What the hell. Might as well give them a show" he chirped, spreading his wings and showing them off to the excited onlookers.

Which he broke off soon after, as the door to the suite opened to admit Mykos and Tass, who stared at the human audience in shock.

Mykos, the first to recover, turned to Pyre with a frown. "Is that really either wise, or necessary?" he said in his deep voice, and Pyre's ears dropped in embarrassment.

The Krynn took in the view, before turning to us with a shrug. "Well, at least this way they can't cover up our presence for much longer" he said, humour registering in his eyes. He then surprised us all by joining the gryphon at the glass, waving happily to the ecstatic crowd in the building opposite, tail wagging in his excitement.

I rolled my eyes at Mykos, who bent down and whispered to us "Them Krynn are crazy!"

"I heard that, gryphon!" the Krynn yelled from the window, and Mykos, K and I broke up into laughter.

_________________

Noon was approaching rapidly, and we began to prepare for the afternoon meeting. K and I had managed to scavenge some clean clothes from amongst the guards, who brought us various items of clothing from the locker room to replace our soiled ones. The Krynn was the difficult one, his short stature and bushy tail causing us difficulty finding something to fit, but we eventually put together something presentable.

Pyre declined everything, his feathers and fur more than sufficient. Mykos simply slipped his plasma rifle across his shoulder blades, stating he was ready. Giving the gun a quizzical look, he shrugged, saying "Sorry. We've been lucky so far, but I never trust luck to last forever" and I nodded at his caution.

With our entourage of guards escorting us, we began making our way to the assembly chambers, Pyre in the lead. However, a few stories down, he suddenly stopped cold, frozen in shock. I pushed him several times, seeking to have him move over to no avail, so pressed past him to see what the issue was.

Where I encountered Gunnard, blocking the hallway with a sneer on his face.

He glanced at me in distain, before returning to stare at Pyre coldly. "Hey, animal? I see you escaped your cage for now."

My blood boiled as I saw the fear cross Pyre's face. Turning to the human, I spat out "Yeah, and I see you got your arse whipped, arsehole. What's it like, being beaten down like the dog you are, in front of your masters?"

Turning to me in fury, he clenched his fist, ready to launch an attack, when I felt a heavy stir from behind, as Mykos pushed past Pyre to stand at my shoulder, watching the human in disdain, with his plasma rifle held loosely in his hands.

"Is there a problem, human?" he rumbled darkly, and Gunnard gave him a look of contempt, before turning back to me.

"I see your pets are still coming at your beck and call, huh. Well, sooner or later, I'll catch you and your monster alone, then the fun will begin."

OK, generally I'm a nice fella. I help out my neighbours, pick up litter, pay my taxes; all the things one does to be a nice, civilised person in a supposedly nice, normal society.

Clearly, that was getting me nowhere fast.

So, fuck with the "Mr Nice Guy" attitude. I'd had enough.

Spinning to the startled gryphon behind, I wrenched the plasma rifle from his grasp, turning and pointing the muzzle of the heavy weapon straight at Gunnard's head.

Everyone froze, including our escort, as I moved forward, pressing the darkened weapon muzzle against his cheek, whispering "Don't fucking push me, cunt!"

He stared at my eyes, ignoring the weapon menacing him, and sneered "Go ahead. I fucking dare you!"

For a moment, I tensed, feeling my finger tighten on the trigger.

Oh, I wanted to fuck him up good and proper.

But I paused, and he saw me pause.

A jubilant smile quickly crossed his face, and I could see he thought he'd won, as he grinned at me nastily.

"Gutless coward. Knew you were too chicken shit to go through with it. This isn't over, and I'm going to be there when you fall. You and the animal both. Wait for it!"

I dropped my head, ears burning furiously, and turned back to Mykos to return the rifle, when Gunnard started chuckling nastily to himself, as he moved to retreat back down the corridor.

For a moment, time froze for me.

I saw Pyres fearful stare; heard that evil laugh echoing through my head; and I cracked.

Too much.

No more!

Reaching down the barrel to grab the rifle with both hands near the muzzle, I swiftly spun back to the Captain.

"Oh Gunnard? I think you forgot something" I said softly into the ensuing silence.

He turned back towards me, spitting out sarcastically "Oh?"

Swinging the rifle around like a baseball bat, I smashed him across the side of the head with the stock, sending him spinning against the wall hard, to land in an unconscious heap on the floor.

Leaning over his prone form, eyeing with grim satisfaction the blood slowly seeping from his torn ear and shattered cheek, I spat in his face, bending forward to whisper "You forgot I don't give a fuck, arsehole". Rising slowly, I turned back to my party who were staring, speechless, at my actions.

I returned the rifle to the gryphon, who eyed me with cautious respect, securing it again in its holster between his wings. Turning to my mate, I patted Pyre gently on the neck, receiving a grateful look in reply, before I spun on our escort, who stood gaping at my actions, unsure whether to intervene.

I snapped sharply "We have a fucking meeting to attend! Let's attend it!", and they shot to attention, one saluting me briefly, before they took the lead, leaving the captains bleeding, inert form lying where it was in the corridor.

Needless to say, no-one else fucked with me again that morning, or any morning after.

Probably for the best, as I was really starting to feel grumpy.

Continued in Chapter 12.