Ignis lightly traced his fingers around the gaping wound on Ryella's side. The dragon hissed in pain, flinching from his touch. The white fur around the injury was dyed red from the blood that had dried on it. While the wound was still fresh, it barely bled. The time spent lying there resting had helped Ryella naturally heal. But she was far from recovered.

"Seems the wounds are beginning to mend themselves," Ignis said. "Some medicine will speed up the process considerably."

"Hear that, Mallow?" Prompto asked, giving the dragon a few pats on the arm. "As soon as the others get back, you'll be as good as new. I can't wait to tell them all about you, you're so amazing!"

Ryella gave a purr in response. Ignis looked out at the orange-tinted sky. The sun was beginning to set and Ryella's hunger came back once more. She tried to suppress the rumbling of her stomach the best she could, but the two males could clearly hear it. Prompto placed a hand over his empty stomach.

"I feel ya, Mallow. I'm pretty hungry myself, so you must be starving."

"Noct and Gladio should be back at any moment," Ignis said. "They did have to climb all the way down and back up the entire mountain. Their delay is understandable."

Prompto groaned in annoyance. "I wish they'd hurry up! We're all gonna starve just waiting for them!"

Ryella suddenly snapped her head up, feeling an abrupt change in the wind currents. She sniffed the air, smelling a familiar scent and picking up the faint sound of wingbeats. The boys watched her in confusion. Realizing what it was, Ryella began snarling viciously, her pupils constricting in fear. The fur along the back of her neck stood up as she lowered her head, her eyes darting across the sky above. She scooted back a bit into the alcove as much as she could, hoping to go unseen by the predatory bird.

"Wh-what's going on?" the gunman nervously inquired.

"Something's frightening her," the advisor replied. "I'd wager the zu has returned to its nest."

He was exactly right. Ryella sensed the zu approaching. It never seemed to leave for long, as if it sensed her presence still in its territory. The dragon was terrified, having so many close calls before where the bird came close to discovering her hiding place. She didn't know if she could remain hidden from it much longer. If it found her alcove, she'd be as good as dead. I can't wait here anymore, she concluded. I have to find a way out of this.

She frantically began looking around her, hoping to figure something out. She glued her eyes onto several rocks that jutted out of the cliffside to her right. They kind of looked like ledges, and if sturdy enough, could probably be used as such. Though it was risky with her injuries, Ryella knew she had to take a chance. She could barely fly with her ripped-up wing, and although her side was still painful as well, she'd have to push through it. The dragon struggled to stand up, whimpering and whining at the shooting pain in her side.

"Whoa, Mallow!" Prompto cried.

"You really shouldn't move!" Ignis explained. "You'll only make your injuries worse!"

Ignoring the two, Ryella kept her gaze fixed on the closest of the ledges. She scooped up the necklaces and carefully placed them in the edge of her mouth, hooking them around her teeth so that she wouldn't drop them. The two boys both followed her gaze, immediately spotting what she was looking at. Ryella stretched her legs a bit and wiggled her hindquarters, preparing to make the jump. Prompto hurried over, clutching onto her tail and trying to tug her back.

"Oh, no you don't," he said rather demandingly, wanting to keep the dragon from getting herself hurt. "You can't leave without being healed. I forbid you to go anywh-aaaah!"

Prompto's sentence was cut off as he let out a shriek, being abruptly yanked forward. Ryella leapt across, dragging the screaming blond with her. The dragon landed on the rocky ledge, balancing herself on the narrow spot and hissing at the stinging sensation in her left side. Prompto was screaming, dangling over the jagged rocks far below. He grasped onto the dark fur that covered the beast's tail, terrified to loosen his grip even a tiny bit for fear of falling.

"Prompto!" Ignis cried from the alcove, watching on in horror as the gunman held on for dear life.

"Mallow!" Prompto shouted in fear and frustration. "This is not okay! You could've gotten us both killed!"

Ryella looked down at the blond. She purred at him and slowly raised her tail, pulling the boy up. She steadily curled her tail up and around, plopping the blond onto her back. Prompto breathed a sigh of relief, taking hold of her fur. She could have easily left him to fall to his doom, but she didn't. She had pulled him to safety and allowed him to sit on her back. For that, he was grateful.

"Thanks," he breathed out. "Guess I can't really stop you, huh?" She stared back at him, purring in response. "If you're really gonna do this, then it looks like I'm tagging along." He gulped, glancing down over the edge. "Just promise you won't drop me."

As if to give him some reassurance, Ryella twisted her head around and opened her mouth a bit, letting the necklaces dangle from her teeth. Prompto's eyes widened slightly. The dragon hadn't even allowed him to go near the trinkets before, but right then, she was urging him to take them from her. It was almost like her way of saying "I trust you to hang onto these, now trust me not to drop you". The gunman reached out, taking hold of the necklaces and pulling them from her jaws. He swiftly slipped them around his neck and clutched onto her fur once more.

"Alright then, I'm ready whenever you are." Prompto looked over to the alcove, cupped his hands around his mouth, and yelled, "Hey, Iggy! I'm okay, I'm gonna stick with Mallow and help her get down from here!"

"Very well!" the advisor shouted back. "I'll head back to find Noct and Gladio and inform them of this! We'll meet up afterwards!"

Ryella suddenly leapt across to the next ledge, causing Prompto to fearfully lean forward against her. After a couple more jumps, the blond was beginning to get used to the altitude. Despite having slight acrophobia, he somehow managed to bury that fear and allow himself to gaze out at the view. With the breeze blowing through his blond hair, he smiled slightly, wishing he could take a picture, but he didn't dare risk letting go of the dragon's fur to do so.

He couldn't quite understand the feeling of safety he had being with the beast. He'd normally be petrified in such a situation, but with the dragon companion he was growing comfortable with, he wasn't afraid. He suddenly realized that they'd stopped. Ryella had her head lowered, scanning the cliffside below for more ledges. Prompto looked around, spotting another ledge higher up. He gave a couple of firm pats to Ryella's back to get her attention.

"Hey, what about up there?" he asked, pointing to the ledge.

Ryella looked back at him and followed his finger. She fixed her gaze on the ledge, calculating her jump. She readied herself while the gunman tightened his grip on her fur. In one swift motion, she leapt up to the ledge, just barely making it. Her back feet slipped off the edge and her claws scrapped the rocks as she scrambled onto the ledge. There was a sudden loud screech from behind them. The two both snapped their heads around, horrified upon seeing the zu flying toward them.

Ryella snarled and roared threateningly back at it, but the bird's advance didn't even slow. The dragon knew she only had one option now. She had to flee. She made a mighty jump off the cliffside. Prompto screamed in terror as they fell. But Ryella spread her wings and took off. She hissed in pain and struggled to fly with her injuries, feeling them beginning to burn and bleed at her sudden movements. The flap of her wings was sloppy due to her wounded right wing, and her speed was nowhere near what it normally was. The zu, on the other hand, was in peak condition and steadily gaining on them.

For a while, Prompto could only glance back at the avian monster on their tail, watching it get closer and closer. Ryella was panting as she struggled to keep going, exhaustion and fear consuming her simultaneously. The gunman could feel every breath she took, realizing that she wouldn't be able to keep going for much longer. But with the zu now in range, an idea popped into his head.

He summoned his gun in one hand. "Listen, Mallow! I can give you an opening to get away, but you have to take it as soon as possible!"

She barked back at him in understanding, scanning the ground below for an escape route. Prompto twisted around, hanging on with one hand while pointing his gun at the bird behind them. The blond carefully took aim and shot a single time. The bullet hit the zu's right eye, causing it to screech in pain. It immediately lost speed and struggled to hover in midair from the sudden loss of sight and agonizing sensation.

Ryella knew that was her chance. Having spotted a lake below them, the dragon tucked her wings in and plummeted. Prompto hastily dismissed his weapon and clutched tightly to the dragon's fur. He saw the water they were diving toward and took a deep breath right before they hit the surface. The two splashed down into the cold lake, disappearing under the surface.

Even under the water, Ryella could still see the zu's massive shape in the sky. Holding her breath, she remained still, watching and waiting. Prompto immediately swam for the surface though, poking his head up out of the water. He gazed up at the bird above, listening to it roar before it circled around and flew away, back toward Ravatogh. The boy then frantically looked around for his dragon friend, noting the pinkish-red color in the water that signified blood.

With the zu gone, Ryella finally swam to the surface. She rose up from under Prompto, lifting him up onto her head as she swam to shore. She moved in a serpentine way, her wings aiding her immensely. But she left a trail of blood behind her as she went, her wounds having reopened. When the two finally reached the shore, Ryella tilted her head down, dumping the boy onto the ground. She almost instantly collapsed due to hunger, exhaustion, and blood loss.

In a panic, Prompto glanced over her injuries before crouching beside her head. "Oh, no! Mallow, hang in there! You're gonna be okay! Just stay with me!"

Ryella purred softly, happy that she wasn't alone. Her fur was soaked and clung to her skin, chilling her. But at the moment, she couldn't even move. She was far too tired and needed rest. She slowly closed her eyes. Prompto feared she might die, but was relieved that she continued to breathe. He assumed she'd only lost consciousness. With the sun's light fading beyond the horizon, Prompto knew they'd be stuck right there for the night. Cold and wet, he took a seat on the ground beside the beast, leaning back against Ryella's neck. He could feel the warmth radiating from her.

His phone suddenly rang. He swiftly slipped it from his pocket, checking who it was before answering. "Hey, Noct," he tiredly greeted.

"Prompto, Ignis told us what happened. You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Can't say the same for Mallow though."

"Mallow? Oh, right, the dragon."

"She really needs help," the gunman explained. "I don't know how much longer she can last."

"Where are you?" the prince asked.

Prompto sighed. "I don't know, at some kind of lake. It's not that far from Ravatogh."

"We'll see if we can track you down. Just hold on."

With that, he hung up. Prompto put his phone away, thankful that both it and his camera were waterproof. The boy got comfortable and closed his eyes. Though it would be difficult for him to fall asleep, he knew there wasn't much else he could do. It was getting darker by the minute and daemons would be prowling about. Despite the danger, he couldn't abandon his dragon companion out there alone. He was growing far too attached to her, and so, he would remain with her until his friends came for them.