It wouldn't be long before there was a quick snap of a branch behind him and an unfamiliar person tried to tackle him.
He cried out, tossing the Enryli at him. He pressed his hand to the ground, and vines grew out of the ground, trying to wrench him off.
There were two others. They took out blades and cut at the vines, one stepping on his wrist. The one that tackled him also drew a knife, grabbing his wing and holding it at the base.
He groaned in pain as the man crumpled the delicate material in his fist. He tried to weakly swat at him, but his wing rendered him immobilized.
The man went to cut his wing, but there was suddenly an angry voice that interrupted, along with a low rumble in the ground. "No!"
Thick, black roots sprouted from the ground, sharp thorns protruding from them. It was Canyon of course, her expression that of anger and concern. Her arms were raised as she controled the roots, throwing them towards the men and easily knocking them away and they were as big around as a tree.
Briar forced himself up, trying his best to fold his crumpled wings back into place. They weren't working properly, angry red lines flowing through the veins, and he looked over at Canyon, his eyes wide.
She was focused on the vines, her eyes glowing with power as she pinned them to trees. "Stay out of our forest!" she said, her voice powerful. It took a moment before she looked down at Briar, calming down and panicking, coming beside him. "Briar! A-Are you okay?"
He looked up at her with wide eyes, noticeably trembling. "I... I think so," he said, trying to look over his shoulder. She would be able to see that his wings had been badly crumpled, torn to one side with the beginning of a cut at the top, where his bronze Enryli was leaking out. They were sticking out at an awkward angle, and he tried repositioning them, but wincing from pain as they convulsed.
She looked at them, her eyes widening before she took a breath. "We need to get to my house. I have something to help and it's protected."
He frowned, standing up awkwardly. His wings obviously contributed to his normal walking abilities, because he stumbled, leaning against a tree. "God, I'm... I'm so embarrassed."
