The Eagle Clan was quickly rebuilding itself to an even better state than it had been before the arson all that time ago. Everyone had returned to their more normal lives, Noa had become the new clan leader and was beginning to adjust to the new responsibilities and expectations.

Since Mae, the first Echo, intelligent as well...human he had met, had shaken his trust and yet not destroyed his hope for a resolution of this misunderstanding and a happy coexistence between apes and humans, he had never met another Echo up close. That is, until the patrol returned from surveying the territories, alarmingly reporting to Noa about fresh Echo tracks on their territory in the forests near the clan.

Almost immediately the ape jumped on his horse and went to check with his eagle Sun following him. It didn't take long to find the approximate location of Echo, it may even have built a nest somewhere here, but for some reason it was only noticed now.

Noa jumped off his horse, moving quickly and looking around in an attempt to find his target and make sense of the situation.