Winwolfa (A Roan x Female OC Fanfic)

Chapter 58

Green, vast and lush, spread around her. Soft mosses squished underneath her feet as she ventured deep within. A lullaby played from the native birds as they danced between the trees. A sweet aroma, completely unknown to her, filled her nose. Stars twinkled above in the night sky, painting it iridescent. Over the horizon, a large planet, swirling in blues and violets, was rising over a large mountain stead. Snow sparkled along the top.

Two figures suddenly appeared in front of her. A man and a woman. Dark hair shone in the sky. The woman's cascaded down her back with sleekness, swishing ever so slightly in the wind. The tall, stalky man's hair curled around the nape of his neck. They spun around, facing Astrid. Instantly, she recognized them. She recognized the runic symbols on their faces. Those golden eyes and soft smiles that were a replica of Astrid's.

"Save us." Her father called out to her, outstretching his hand. Spindled fingers, with nails filed to a sharp point, reached out. Her hand accepted the offer. But it was not her's. Instead, it was a small childs. Stumbling, she reached for them in the towering grass.

"Save us, young one." Her mother beckoned her, offering her own hand. Astrid reached for them, feeling the coolness, the familiarity, of their hands in her own youthful ones. Her head craned up to look at her father, who bore a ghastly smile on his face as her surroundings faded to black and the ground beneath her slipped away.

Astrid was falling. An endless descent into a realm she had never visited. Only the stars and distant planets graced her sight. Limbs failing, stretching to grasp onto something, anything in the nothingness. For a moment, she believed she knew where she was. The familiarity seemed to comfort her. Yet, she still fell. Farther and farther, and deeper and deeper, until the universe she knew washed away with a shrilling bright light.

Her heart thundered against her chest as she shot awake. Beads of sweat dripped from her forehead and chest, dampening the linens below her. Her hand brushed through her short locks, fiddling with the ends just above her shoulder. Once her breath steadied, she shifted her gaze to the slumbering man beside her, gently stirring awake. An eye cracked open, landing immediately on hers.

"Another nightmare?" Roan croaked through his sleepiness. She nodded. "It's been a while since you had one."

Astrid ran a hand over her face. It had been over two years on the Ring and the sleep terrors from Earth slowly stopped haunting her sleep. All the violence and bloodshed and death slowly dissipated. Sometimes, she forgot they ever existed. It seemed so long ago, so distanced that sometimes it felt like just a dream from another life.

But this dream... It felt so real. The wind along her neck from the endless descent, the feeling of the ground underneath her footsteps... Her parents. It wasn't until that dream did she remember their faces. They had never been so clear until now. Even in her memories, their features were nothing but a ripple in the water. Perhaps that was the most frightening part. To actually see her parents' faces again.

Astrid didn't want to admit that she opening the cryosleep pod her.

There was a small tug on the nightgown. Roan's eyes had already fluttered closed, but his hand was beckoning her to return back to bed. She obliged, sneaking under his arm and nestling into his warmth. He held her close. His stubbled chin rested along her neck, breathing softly along her jaw. Each exhale forced his bare ribs against her back. With their fingers interlaced near her navel, they fell asleep peacefully once more.

That eerie feeling didn't stop when they woke a few hours later. Although, Astrid pushed the feeling down and proceeded with her daily routine. Acted like everything was normal. Algae breakfast was normal. Ladies sparring training was normal. It wasn't until she joined Raven in their work room that things began feeling... strange.