The Alpha Twins and their Runaway Witch

108

"We should try and find resources or shelter." Ariel heard Alex say. August made a sound of agreement, but it was Cassian who suggested a direction. Since absolutely everything looked the same in all directions as far as August, Alex, or Ariel were concerned, Cassian was allowed to choose the direction.

Ariel could feel a compass here. It was strange and compared to home. To Ariel's perception the lines were all wobbly. She noticed as they walked, that Cassian wasn't following a wobbly compass direction. Wasn't moving in a straight line at all. He was following a path that did not make sense to Ariel. She still had a direction she would describe as north, but without a sun, or stars, or anything she could trace or track as they walked she couldn't determine what her sense meant here. Whatever Cassian was seeking, he was walking with purpose that Ariel didn't understand.

Alex and August did not seem to be paying much attention to their brother nor did they seem to understand the path he was setting. Allowing Cassian to technically lead the way while Alex and August ran defence, each taking turns occasionally scouting out farther in a different direction. Never finding anything different. Always making sure Ariel was within arms reach of one of them. Their eyes scanning in all directions, there was nothing and no one to be seen.

Ariel's legs began to tire, Cassian could shift into a dragon, Alex and August were wolves. They were stronger, and had far more stamina than Ariel could ever hope to have. Even if she had not spent a few years near starved she would have been the weakest in their group. Ariel looked at the never changing, rolling clouds overhead. They still glowed the same even eerie yellow colour. "I don't think the sun sets here?" Ariel said aloud, trying to find some marker of change in the landscape, or clouds. Unable to see anything different from when they had started to walk.

Fi'Ahn tripped over her feet as she almost came closer than ten steps away from Ariel as everyone stopped walking. Looking at the never changing scenery all around and over head. No one paid the dark witch any mind as they considered their situation again. Ariel didn't care if she stayed quiet because she was still bound by Ariel's command to shut up, or if it was of her own volition. Cassian looked like he was straining his eyes trying to see farther in the direction he had been leading them.

Alex was the first one to respond to Ariel. "I think you're right, we've been walking for hours, and the light hasn't changed at all." He said, looking at the yellow rolling clouds that occasionally sparked with hidden lightning. Ariel pointedly, was looking anywhere but down at the never ending glass buried graveyard of bones under her feet.

August had scrunched his brows together. "Maybe days are longer here? It's hard to tell what is happening with the clouds." Ariel didn't bother to look in the dark witches direction, instead just asking out loud if she had anything to add. Fi'Ahn shook her head, only to start choking. This was a Nevered world, she felt her muscles and voice work against her mind. "The clouds are full of poison." her lipsing voice sputtered out. Yellow clouds were always poisonous. They were probably being exposed to the invisible slow burn every second on this Empress forsaken Nevered world.

Cassian turned around to look at the dark witch. "That means flying would be a bad idea then." Sounding disappointed. His one and only possible advantage would be useless. "I think the horizon looks different ahead." He said, pointing for his brothers so they could try and use their wolf enhanced senses to see what he thought he saw.

Ariel also did her part, and squinted towards the horizon. Glad when both August and Alex announced at the same time, that there were some bumps on the horizon where Cassian had pointed. All the brothers clearly excited that all three could see something new up ahead. Ariel hadn't been able to see anything. But right now, the hope that there was something different was enough.

Alex, Cassian, and August were all freshly invigorated now that they agreed they could see something different on the horizon. A point where the unchanging smooth horizon looked uneven. Bumpy. August carried Ariel on his back when she needed a break. Her head rested on his shoulder, her arms around his neck. She melted against his back, exhausted, knowing August would hold her safe, Ariel was rocked to sleep as they continued walking.

Alex noticed the dark witch was falling farther behind the longer they walked. The brothers did not slow down on her account. They only stopped briefly so August could switch Ariel over to Alex. Who was starting to pout that August had gotten to hold Ariel for so long. Instantly smiling when a sleepy Ariel snuggled into his shoulder, and continued to rest easily against his back.

August rolled out his shoulders. Stretching out his muscles and joints. It was best if he and Alex took turns, they needed to work together, as a team. Under never changing skies, they walked for what felt like days, but without any means to measure time the only marker of time passing was the bumps on the horizon drawing closer. Revealing themselves to be stone spire formations.

While Ariel continued to sleep on Alex's shoulder, they approached a forest of twisted, stone formations that looked like they erupted from the ground with violence. The black glass ground gave way, first fractures began to show, then coarse gravel which turned to ash coloured sand as Cassian led the way through the twisted stone forest.

There was nothing green, and nothing alive. They had not once seen any sign of life. The only sounds were ones they made or the sound of the wind, the only movement was their own. Cassian leaned against one of the stones, his own stamina finally flagging. "I need to stop." He announced. Fi'Ahn instantly fell to the sands, saying something that might have been a prayer. No one cared.

Alex and August nodded to their brother. A break was a wise idea, and the wolves were much more comfortable to be able to rest with stone at their backs instead of nothing but open air. An additional bonus was the soft sand ground would be much more comfortable than the black solid ground.

Alex and August worked together to ensure Ariel could stay sleeping as long as her body needed, settling her between them as they sat backs against a large stone formation. Cassian choose his down, facing towards them. August looked towards Cassian, who wasn't scanning the stone forest for signs of danger or movement. He was only looking in one direction. "Cassian." August whispered. Pulling his brothers attention back from where he was looking. August and Alex looked at Cassian, each raising an eyebrow as they looked at their brother knowingly.

Cassian; who had never even bothered to date while at the pack lands with Alex and August running wild through the female population; had also not fared much better at the Dragon Court since relocating. It turned out, that no one liked a guy who enjoyed organizing ancient manuscripts, research projects and who had a propensity to follow rules and order. Blushed crimson. Embarrassed to admit what was happening.

He shrugged his shoulders, no longer able to make eye contact with his brothers. "I don't know how to explain it. It was like something was pulling me in this direction." Alex and August both in tandem spared a glance down to their sleeping mate safely snuggled between them, before looking at Cassian.

Cassian who was not looking at them any longer. The wolves looked between each other and grinned. "Cas, think it's possible your mate is out there?" Alex asked.

"Sounds a lot like how it felt when we were looking for Ariel" August added. Cassian turned to look at his brothers. Eyes wide open in his narrow face. Looking far more like a barn owl than a dragon as his neck swivelled between looking at his brothers, and off in the distance.

"When we entered the forest, the feeling started to feel like it was circling us, not a destination." Alex and August nodded. Both reaffirming that it very much sounded like when they were seeking Ariel, before they knew what they had been looking for. No one mentioned the quiet part out loud, that if Cassian did have a mate here, then that meant not everything was dead and they might not have to slowly starve to death here.

*Happy Holidays! Hope you are enjoying this VERY long story. I'm sorry, the Greenrivers family just wont stop giving me ideas. I think I have the path to the end of this story more or less figured out, just need to write my way to get there now. Thank you so much for reading, every single view, and any chapter like or comment sincerely gives me a little shot of joy. This is my happy place, and ya'll brew the happy for me.*