Ashen Light

Chapter 19: Unknown

The Solis Dunes stretched endlessly in all directions, the sand shifting like waves beneath the relentless sun. The group had settled into a quiet rhythm, the monotony of their steps occasionally broken by brief exchanges or the crunch of shifting sands.

Astro, ever curious, walked slightly behind Zack and Skylar, his dark blue eyes scanning the landscape with quiet fascination. Every now and then, his wolf ears twitched under the hood he wore to shield himself from the sun, as though catching sounds beyond mortal hearing.

"Do humans ever... get used to this?" Astro asked suddenly, his voice thoughtful as he gestured broadly to the expanse of dunes. "This... endless emptiness?"

Zack glanced over his shoulder, raising an eyebrow. "What, deserts? Or being in the middle of nowhere with nothing but your thoughts to keep you company?"

Astro tilted his head, considering. "Both."

Skylar smirked, her steps light despite the heat. "It's not like we have much choice, Astro. You learn to deal with it. The heat, the silence. The loneliness."

She paused, then added with a teasing grin, "Though it helps to have company. Zack's endless complaining is practically background music at this point."

"Hey!" Zack shot her a glare, but it was devoid of malice. "I don't complain. I comment. Big difference."

Astro blinked, the faintest smile tugging at his lips. "It's strange. Back home, silence meant everything was right with the world. Here... it feels heavy. Like it's waiting for something."

Cyrus, who had been walking at the front of the group, glanced back, his sandy hair sticking to his forehead from the heat. "You're not wrong," he said, his tone casual. "The desert has a way of playing tricks on you. Making you think something's out there even when it's not."

Astro nodded, though his gaze remained distant. "And the fear? How do you deal with that? Knowing something is out there... waiting?"

Skylar and Zack exchanged glances, the mood shifting slightly. Zack scratched the back of his head, looking uncharacteristically somber. "You don't really deal with it," he admitted. "You just... keep moving. Hoping you're faster than whatever's chasing you."

Cyrus didn't respond immediately, his gaze fixed on the horizon. "You don't let it stop you," he said finally, his voice quiet but resolute. "Fear is a part of the fight. But it doesn't get to win."

Astro considered this, his steps slowing as he stared at the sand beneath his feet. "Humans are strange," he said softly. "So fragile, and yet... so stubborn."

Skylar snorted. "Takes one to know one, wolf-boy."

Astro flushed, the tips of his ears turning a faint pink. "I'm not fragile," he muttered, a childish pout crossing his face as he looked away once more.

The group chuckled, the tension easing as they continued their trek through the dunes. But even as they laughed, the weight of Astro's question lingered in the back of their minds, unspoken but understood.

The sun hung low in the sky, casting the Solis Dunes in shades of amber and crimson as the group continued their trek through the desert. The oppressive heat of the day was finally waning, but an eerie stillness had settled over the landscape. The usual sound of the wind brushing over the sand was absent, replaced by that unnatural silence that made Cyrus's skin crawl.

Zack trudged a few paces ahead, his rifle slung over his shoulder. "You know," he said, glancing back, "for all the talk about the desert being dangerous, it's been pretty quiet."

"Too quiet," Skylar murmured, her eyes scanning the horizon. She adjusted the strap of her quiver, her hand never straying far from her bow. "I don't like it."