Hunt

Chapter 85: What Awaits Us At The End

I had no ideas how much time had passed until we had gotten back into civilization. Much to my surprise I come to find out that I had been trying to realign myself for nearly a week. It didn't feel like we were gone for nearly that long, but with how little sleep I was getting during that time it's no surprise that I struggled to recall a couple of those days. I'm exhausted. Even the act of driving felt like it would be too much for me. But even through extreme sleep deprivation I still manage to safely bring us back to the neighborhood.

The roaring engine sputters to silence as I pull the key from the ignition. The neighborhood looked like nothing had changed, the lazy homes are still and silent in the afternoon heat. David steps from the passenger seat, motioning for me to wait as he quickly crosses the street. From where I'm sitting I can see that he's immediately flanked by a couple members of the pack. Probably discussing any new developments since he and I had taken off for my realignment. I can already begin to feel the heat creeping into the car where cool air conditioned air once was.

As I begin to sweat I start to feel like one of those dogs that's been left in a hot car in a parking lot while its owner is off shopping. The irony isn't entirely lost on me as I lean my head back against the headrest, closing my eyes for a brief moment. I let my thoughts wander aimlessly, finding that I'm quickly drawn to thinking about the others. I wonder what they're up to right now. What they've been doing since I left. They're probably inside or in some shade trying to beat this heat...

I open my eyes right as David motions for me to follow after him from across the road. I didn't need any convincing to escape the sweltering heat. Quickly stepping from the car was like taking a breath of fresh air. The breeze, while light, is a much welcome comfort from the growing stagnation in the car. I wipe the sweat from my forehead, looking to the other lycans that David had been talking to. Recognizing Markus amongst them I'm met with a scowl as our eyes meet momentarily. He looks like he wants to say something but is quickly interrupted by his father, who gestures for me as he breaks away from the others. "Come on son, let's get out of this heat. It's been a long week."

I shoot one more glance back towards Markus before obediently following after David. He had that same frustrated scowl on his face, but I could almost sense a hint of jealousy behind his green eyes. What could he possibly be jealous of?

"Alright kid. You're all balanced out again. I think that covers my end of the deal..." David states as we enter the house, continuing before I can even open my mouth. "Don't worry I haven't forgotten, you'll be purified later tonight. But I need to discuss my side of the deal with you before can we get to that... However, it looks like you're one strong breeze from falling over. There's a spare bedroom upstairs on the left, get some sleep. We can continue talking about this later."

I didn't feel like I was close to collapsing until David points it out to me. The ache in my bones, the fatigue in my muscles, the heaviness of my eyelids. It all comes crashing over me all at once. I no longer had the energy to think of the words I wanted to say to David right now. My brain feeling like it was stuck in a dense and heavy fog. It was taking all of my focus and brainpower just to put one foot in front of the other, the stairs ahead of me look to be the most difficult thing I've fought in recent memory.

It doesn't take long before I find the guest room David had said I could use. Staggering towards the bed I find myself falling unconscious long before my head even hits the pillow. The sleepless nights and countless transformations had pushed my body well beyond its physical limits. It's a miracle that I even managed to get this far before collapsing. I've never been this tired before, save for when Paul had been putting me through boot camp. Like a warm blanket I can feel myself falling into a long overdue deep sleep...

"So you've finally decided to sleep. You have no idea how difficult it's been trying to get you in here."

I don't even have to open my eyes to know what's going on. I could feel the familiar cold fog enveloping my body as I lay in a soft bed of grass and moss. Slowly opening my eyes I find myself staring up into a foggy forest. Sky obscured by a soft blanket of white clouds. Reyna's domain of forest and fog. I'm not surprised she pulled me here, I was fully expecting this conversation...