Wren followed the juvenile blood upstream while Vell's torn calf slowed everyone behind her. She adjusted her pace after noticing the gap, but she never abandoned the scent to return for him.
The contract carried urgency without a demand for speed, letting Vell read her decision clearly. Wren wanted him on the trail, but she intended to keep leading it herself.
Yenna bound the muscle firmly enough to preserve walking movement, then carried the salvage case herself. Her two cut fingers remained wrapped while the bruised forearm accepted the case weight.
Jia ranged along the opposite bank, using her sword to test reeds before either hunter entered them. The bandage around her temple stayed dry, though every downward check pulled at the cut beneath it.
The black pinions grew more frequent where the river narrowed beneath the feeding ridge. Each feather carried blood along its broken base, showing somebody had pulled it from a living bird.
