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Cassandra had a pulse, but a secretive symbol for her hidden ability could be seen on her shoulder, a symbol standing for the desert. She was breathing, but had passed out from strain on the weak power she rarely ever used, used only when she knew that danger was too much to flee from.

Murat sat back in relief that she was still alive. When he saw the mark on her shoulder he frowned and traced his finger over it. "Hassan, have you seen anything like this? It looks like a scar but it's...different."

Hassan tasted the water and then got up to see what Murat was having a fit about. "Huh, interesting." He raised his fist to the sky and Murat ducked as a flurry of feathers and talons swept past him to land on Hassan's fist.

Cass didn't budge, but the symbol felt like the heat of a desert of a very sunny day and about as smooth as the sand too. When she heard the sound of the hawk she stirred weakly, but was exausted and couldn't get up, tired. Her blue eyes opened slightly, looking at Hassan and Murat with a tinge of pain and being injured.

Hassan pursed his lips and whistled sharply. Fawzi ambled towards him. "Alright, Murat, with your good arm, we're going to get that sand lioness onto my camel. Can you steady one end?"

Murat nodded and gently pet Cassandra's head. "Hang in there, Cass. Just relax." To Hassan: "Yes, I can do that."

Hassan ordered Fawzi to her knees and then between Murat and himself, managed to sling Cassandra over the saddle. "I'll walk," said Murat. "I'm not sure I can ride given my state."

"Then I'll ride Jasafar if that's okay?" Hassan asked. "Someone should ride at her level."

Murat hesitated and then nodded. "I'll take Fawzi's reins then." They swapped mounts and Hassan kept close enough to keep a hand on Cassandra. "Head northwest, you'll run into the city eventually."

Murat nodded and led the way of the odd little caravan.

Cass cringed lightly but looked ahead, her bruise still festering. Only the talon mark was festering; An unseen talon embedded into the flesh. ''Where...Are we going?'' She asked, blue eyes squinting.

Hassan heard and answered. "We're heading home; to Madeena." He kept an eye to her injury. "How are you feeling?"

Jasafar lowered his head to Murat, nudging his injured knight. "Good boy, Jas," Murat said softly. They were making some good time. And it helped that he was walking--his arm didn't hurt nearly so much. That or he was getting used to the pain.

''My blister still hurts, like something is embedded into there deeply and hitting my jawbone.''

"What?! Murat, stop the camels!" Hassan waited for both camels to stop before he peered more closely at Cass' fur. "Which side...?" he asked, carefully running his hands over the fur, feeling for something that shouldn't belong. Almost at once he found the embedded talon and he frowned. "Oh goodness...that feels deep."

Murat looked worried, but stayed quiet. If Hassan could heal a hawk's injured wing, he could probably help Cass.

Cass cringed, teeth gritted. ''What is it? I can feel your hands over it.''

"If I had to say, it feels like a piece of sharp rock or sand. But if it's shaped at all like I think it is, then it might be a talon." He gingerly felt around the spot knowing it was probably hurting Cass. "If I don't remove it, it's possible the injury will get worse."

Murat watched from where he was, feeling dread crawl over him. "If only we weren't so far from Madeena," he murmured, "we wouldn't have to worry."

Hassan looked down at Murat. "Hush; she won't bleed out; it'll just hurt like hell. I have bandages," he added to Cass, "but it'll be important that you not move when I remove it."

''Not even talk?'' She whined, cringing.

"You can talk," reassured Hassan. "I would rather you do." He patted his hand dry on his burnoose and gathered a wad of gauze before resettling his hand against the embedded talon. "Alright, I want you to think of something calming. The cool desert at night; being with a pride of fellow sand lions; being a cub and playing with your fellow siblings..."

Hassan's voice slowed and took on a reminiscent tone. When he was sure that she was thinking of something else, he gritted his teeth and twisted the embedded talon free. Just as quickly, he clamped the wad of gauze to the wound. "Keep thinking of your pride," he said calmly, though his heart was racing. "Of the pride you grew up with. Of your family, of those adopted siblings of yours..."

Mostly he was praying that Cass wouldn't struggle too much because if she hit Fawzi, the camel would probably spook and run. And that was the last thing he needed. He also hoped that Murat had a good hold on the camel for that reason.

Cass yowled in a searing pain, but kept true and didn't budge, though her tail flinched quickly as a stinging pain surged through jaws rapidly.

The camel beneath her wanted to budge, but Murat had long since tightened his grip on the camel's lead.

Hassan nodded, and then quickly bound the bandage around Cass' head. "There; that should help for now. I'm sorry I didn't have anything for the pain." He held up the talon that he extracted however. "This was what was in you." It was a good size, and sharp as a cactus spine. The hawk perched on Hassan's shoulder squawked, eyeing it.

She cringed a bit. ''It's a sand bird talon, from the one we killed the first time.''

Hassan turned to look at Murat and held it out to show him. "Do you have one of these embedded in your arm?"

Murat shook his head. "No. I don't have a talon in my arm, it's just broken at the wrist."

Hassan sighed. "Thank goodness." He turned back to Cass. "You're lucky it didn't get in any further; or struck anywhere vital. You can get us going again, Murat. We'll never make it if we keep stopping."

''It hit my face so hard I blacked out...''

Hassan winced. "You've got bruises to show for it. A hawk couldn't have done better." As though recalling his own hawk, he reached up to gently stroke the bird's chest feathers. The hawk let him, eyeing the scenery around them with distrust.

They made good time, traveling as they did, and stopped for evening where Hassan found himself tasked with doing most of the work, except for cooking, which Murat could do one-handed.

"You're lucky I found you out here," Hassan said as they ate. "Another two days and you'd be buzzard food--or maybe sand bird bait."

Cass winced and tried to clean her wings off, the sand building up until she'd nuzzle a muscle to loosem the globs of sand. Her wings were silky smooth, but the hit from the bird had slightly tore off a few of her prized dark brown feather hues.

Murat shot a look of warning at Hassan when he spoke of them being buzzard food before he looked over as Cass tried to clean her wings. "You want some help? Hassan might lend you a hand."

The other knight opened his mouth to argue and then closed it. "Murat's right, though I might suggest you wait until we back at Madeena so you can take a proper bath to clean off. The next nearest oasis is...too far to contemplate."