Welcome to Gaia! ::

The walk back had been long, as Mikree had expected. They arrived at the Watchpoint after dark, coming through the tunnels that Blackwatch frequented so as not to raise the alarm from the Overwatch side of things. Their trip back had started with Mikree scolding Reyes for his actions, but eventually that had tapered off as relief finally took hold of the tan lion. They had to stop to rest frequently, mostly for Reyes' benefit but also for Mikree's who was essentially carrying the other lion. The first water source they had found had also served as a bath for Reyes, opening up the wounds again but washing his fur free of blood, which meant that most of the flies that had found them remained behind.

Exhausted but needing to let Morrison know Reyes was alive, he led his boss to his office so he wouldn't have to sleep among the other Blackwatch members while so severely injured. His plan was to settle him down, find Morrison, and find a healer. He was relieved, therefore, to see a familiar lion standing in the small office as he slowly brought Reyes in.

"Commander," he said dryly. "Found him."

Mikree very nearly dragged Reyes to the pile of furs so he could lay down, the other lion exhausted and in pain. He settled him onto the pile carefully, taking care not to jostle his side which was ripped open pretty badly. A medic could come and help, but that was about all they could do now. That and pray.

Mikree glanced at Morrison, a grim look on his face. "Dunno for sure. Found him like this midday yesterday. Lots of blood, all dried. Probably was like that for at least two days before I got there." On the plus side, most of his wounds had started to scab over again now that they were done their most strenuous walking. He wasn't bleeding freely from anything anymore, although some blood still did ooze out between the scabs. Now it was a matter of getting him fed, watered, and rested.

The younger lion watched a bit awkwardly as Morrison spoke to Reyes. He finally had to look away as the pale lion settled down beside the dark. He had never flat-out asked Reyes about his past with Morrison, but he'd get snippets and assumed things here and there. He knew that a rift had been put between them once Overwatch was founded, but before that...things had been very, very different.

Morrison's voice brought him back to reality. The urgency to get Reyes back was no longer surging through him and his own wounds from the battle with the dark lioness were starting to ache and burn.

"He hasn't said much of what happened," he said, his voice a bit heavy with exhaustion. "But when I got there there was a huge black lioness waitin', as if she knew someone would come. I fought her off and another black lion came chargin' in, but they left right after that. I dunno if it was them, or if they were workin' for someone....but no hyenas. Anywhere. Didn't smell 'em, didn't see 'em..."

"Aw, shucks boss, thanks for noticin'," Mikree said with a tired but amused smirk. He felt like hell, too, but he had been through worse many times. The one that came to mind first was the mission with Reyes where he had nearly fallen out of the Citadel. That had been awful. And then another time with Deadlock when he had been just a cub, starving and aching from the long bouts of walking they'd been doing. While he hadn't really been injured then he had no sense of suffering, so to his young mind that had been the worst.

The command to stay made him hesitate. He knew he'd be visited by the medic eventually, but Reyes definitely needed her first right now. The dark furs did look inviting - he didn't have anything quite like that back in the area he usually slept in - but there was something about Morrison and Reyes that held him back. It was rare to see Reyes in such a vulnerable state so that itself was disconcerting for the young male, but seeing him and the pale commander fit so perfectly together even after their little bouts of bickering....well. He felt a bit out of place.

"I'll just stand here 'n wait for her," he said with a shake of his head, declining the invitation to join but remaining close by. "Reyes had enough of me comin' back here, I'm sure. Could use a familiar shoulder to lean on." Not that he himself wasn't familiar, of course, but Morrison and Reyes went way, way back. There was that bond between them that arguments couldn't sever. He was at his weakest and Mikree knew only those close to him would allow the dark lion to rest properly.

Mikree shrugged one shoulder - the one that Reyes hadn't been leaning on the whole walk back - and glanced back at Morrison. He knew if he had the option Morrison would have been right there with him, or even perhaps ahead of him in finding the dark male. Reyes meant a lot to Mikree, of course, but there were some things that just couldn't beat out a long, established history.

"Not because you haven't wanted to be there," he said, his voice tired but gentle. "Just goes to show how much of a stubborn idiot he is, though. Needs two grown lions keepin' tabs on him," he added, a bit of his usual joking tone returning to his voice.

He snorted softly as Morrison tossed in his own little jab aimed at himself before sitting down. He could at least take a load off his feet if not curl up and sleep. He didn't want to rest fully until Merci was here.

"Gettin' a beatin' like that can change you," he said, recalling his own multiple moments of getting his a** kicked that stripped away his cockiness and pride, leaving him ashamed and thankful that Reyes had been there to save him. The dark lion had flat-out thanked him, after all. He had never heard those words leave Reyes' lips in that order before.

"I betcha he'll wake up thinkin' you're the prettiest thing he's ever seen, premature white mane and all." He really couldn't help himself sometimes.