Sex: MaleIt had taken a full week to cross the mountain. Favoring his left hind leg the whole way made for a slow and painful journey from Spectral Woods towards home. Many times over Coal cursed the cougar who had shattered his leg and caused this agony. Even though he had spent several weeks letting the injury heal while feasting on carcasses left behind by other beasts the bones still ached unbearably, especially in the cool of the mornings. But he had finally managed to reach the west side of Mount Dire and take a much needed drink from Bramble falls before moving on through the Wildwood.
The huge male still moved slowly and with a pronounced limp, and it was fortunate that no enemies spotted him during this time of weakness. It was unlikely that he would survive any hostile encounter and therefore skirted most left over carcasses, for fear that he might get into a scuffle, unless he was starving. Throughout the painful trek Coal's only reason to keep on moving forward was @Aideen, his beloved. Fearful thoughts that she had given herself to another terrorized the man, even though they had both professed their love for one another. He knew that she was cozy with at least one or two of the males of Secret Woodlands, including the alpha, and though he would trust Miccah with anything else he couldn't shake the worry off.
After a few long days of walking with the mountains behind him, Coal reached the edge of the Wildwood and looked beyond at the wild orchard, suddenly feeling too exhausted to continue on now that the sun had begun to set. With a deep breath of pain and fatigue he lowered himself to his belly and rolled onto his right side, eyes fluttering closed. "Too...too tired to go on," he murmured, picturing Aideen in his mind. Perhaps tomorrow he could start again...
