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Tales Of Morveria: Frigid Pink, Episode 4

From the Lonely Abyss of the Arctic, Two Beast Folk Rediscover Themselves

By Mantrid Brizon

(Also, also written during the full moon of October, 2022)

Garsyn opens his eyes very early the next morning only to find himself staring at the sky. A cool breeze touches portions of his body while a warm and heavy fur blanket covers the remainder. He lifts he head to look, realizing that this fur blanket is in fact Sakina, nude and lying partially over him. He’d succumbed to his carnal desires and enjoyed her for a second time, granted she did not give him much chance to say ‘no.’ As he stirs, she slithers off of him and rolls onto her back, her feminine mounds jiggling.

Garsyn stares, and would have continued to do so had it not been for the wind sending a chill up his spine. He rolls and looks for their clothes, which they’d stripped during their rather wild and passionate night. She rode him like a trained concubine but couldn’t withstand the pleasure. Once Sakina climaxed, Garsyn took control and mounted her in the manner she had always expected. He was rough and demanding, holding her hips and her mane as he thrust into her. When his own climax arrived, he did not ask her where she wanted his seed; he pushed her head into the soft earth and left her buttocks raised as he filled her womanhood to overflowing.

Though shocked by his own behavior, she appeared to greatly appreciate it. Once he’d removed himself, after taking a moment to remain on his knees behind her, catching his breath, she swiftly latched on and snuggled with him. The warmth of her body and the crackling fire combined with his exhaustion; it made it very easy to sleep on the hastily constructed bed of pine boughs. Even now, as he pulls on his clothes, he finds a strange amount of comfort in here mere presence; knowing that she’s within arm’s reach soothes him more than he thought it would. He cannot help himself and lovingly pets her side, his hand following her feminine curves.

“Good morning.” Kyron’s voice startles him.

“Ahh! I mean... Good morning, Kyron.”

“[Did] you not see me sit[ting] here?” The male Vostii smirks, watching the human pulling up his pants.

“No. Did you stay awake all night?”

“No.” Kyron shakes his head. “I scout[ed the] area, saw we were very alone and rested. I awoke several time[s] and check[ed] for danger. I found none.”

“Oh...”

“Garsyn...”

“Yeah?” Garsyn looks to the Vostii as he pulls on his tunic.

“May I ask [a] question?” Kyron’s brow softens as he feels his submissive instincts taking over.

“Of course!” Garsyn chirps as he pulls on his coat.

“How [did] your tribe not see [the] attack [coming]? [Did] your tribe not keep watch?”

“We did...” Garsyn sighs, picking up Sakina’s animal hide clothes a distance away from their bough bed. “We had a watchtower.”

“What [is a] ‘watchtower?’”

“It’s like a tall tree with a hut on top, but we build it.”

Kyron is in awe as his mind tries to picture this “watchtower,” imagining a pine tree with pine boughs forming the shutters of windows, like those he’d seen in the human’s village. It only leaves him with more questions. How could they not see the attack coming? Are the beast folk of the southern lands more tactful than his own kin?! What if they march north and conquer the arctic plateau?!?!

“They should’ve seen the horde from a great distance away. I have no idea why they didn’t. Maybe the untamed tricked them or approached from all directions at once?” Garsyn sighs, his mind still reeling from the loss of his home, family and friends.

“Oh... Would ‘untamed’ travel north?”

“To your tribe? I doubt it. If this is the same tribe of untamed beast folk as we were warned about, then they’re led by Sabaarii of the water-kin. That race cannot handle such extremely cold temperatures and would die very quickly atop the arctic plateau.” He continues, returning to Sakina’s side with her clothes in his hands.

“Oh!” Kyron breathes a sigh of relief.

He watches as Garsyn drapes Sakina’s clothing over her body. He then places his forehead in a palm, lets out a heavy sigh and covers his face with both hands, the tip of his pointed human nose protruding from the middle. His sorrow is obviously great.

“Who was [that] female? [The] one who lay in [the] bed.” Kyron suddenly asks.

“She was... S-someone who...” Garsyn struggles to answers.

“Was she family?”

“Well...”

“Was she your mate?” Sakina abruptly asks, having awoken during their conversation.

“...”

Kyron and Garsyn both turn to her. She opens her eyes and turns her head, a look of disappointment on her face. She sits up and collects her tunic as it tumbles from her feminine form. She looks down at the crumpled heap of her heavy, hide clothes and slowly, perhaps even ashamedly, pulls them over her body. Garsyn remains silent, unwilling to answer. She sighs but doesn’t press him; she can see him tensing up as he stares at her. She shifts her body as she sits on one leg and one buttocks, leaning close to him.

“When you [are] ready, I [will] become your mate. I... I want [to] be[come] your mate.”

Her eyes are so soft, so sincere. Her casual dismissal of his sins only makes it even harder to live with, but the fact that she’s there somehow eases the shame and the pain. Unable to express himself in any other way, Garsyn moves closer and takes her into his arms, embracing her tightly.

“When I am ready...” He whispers very quietly into her ear, hoping that Kyron won’t hear him. “There will be no one else I want for a mate.”

Sakina smiles as her eyes begin to water with joyous tears. She wraps her arms around the human and embraces him tightly. There is still hope for her future, a future with Garsyn. She looks to Kyron and finds him sharing her smile. Even he could not deny the power of their affection or its sincerity. They eat a simple breakfast and pack up their camp before continuing the long and monotonous hike to Garsyn’s tribe. They stop only once, to rest, have a light meal and drink from a glacial stream, preserving the water in their water bladders. That’s when he notices it.

“Are you okay?!” Garsyn turns to Sakina, who winces upon taking another step.

“I [am] fine.” She replies.

Garsyn looks into her eyes but he doesn’t believe her. She cannot still be sore from sex: that pain faded quickly enough the first time, and she showed no signs of soreness or irritation after their second encounter. He looks to Kyron who promptly snitches on her by shaking his head. With a frustrated sigh, Garsyn grabs her ankle and raises her paw-like foot.

“G-Garsyn! I-I said I [am] fine!” She whimpers. “Ouch!”

She winces as Garsyn tests her foot, doing nothing more than pressing his palm against the sole of her moccasins. His angry eyes turn up to her and he begins removing the animal hide slipper.

“W-wait! I [can] walk!” She pleads, grabbing his shoulders.

Garsyn doesn’t listen and lifts her bare foot as he examines her footpad. To his horror, her footpad has cracked and begun to bleed. Her footpads used to be brown, but the skin has rubbed away at the edges and her entire foot looks worn, with raw, pink flesh visible in many places. He hangs his head and sighs, then turns to Kyron. His eyes move toward the male’s feet.

“I [am] not hurt.”

“Sakina...” Garsyn looks up at her.

She nibbles on her bottom lip and her arms tremble as she leans back and supports her weight. The look in her eyes could only be described as sheer terror.

“Why do you look so scared?!” Garsyn asks, taken aback by her expression.

“P-please! I [can] walk! Please, I wish to stay!” She pleads with him, grabbing his tunic and pulling them closer.

It finally occurs to him. Often, bands of beast folk in distress, small tribes for example, will abandon members who are a liability or otherwise slowing them down; to protect the whole, a few sacrifices might occur. It’s something that never even occurred to him until that moment.

“Sakina...” He speaks very softly and warmly, resting his hands over hers. “I am not leaving you behind.”

“[Do] you promise?” She asks with a rather adorable whimper.

“Of course!” He insists, resting his hands on her back and pulling her even closer. “I couldn’t have made it this far without you, and I won’t abandon you, not now, not ever.”

“Aww!” Her heart soars.

“We will have to take time to rest your feet, though... We’ve been walking the same distance. Why are your feet so damaged?”

“[The] heat. I feel my feet burn[ing], but I [did] not want to leave your side.” She admits.

Garsyn believes her. No wonder Kyron isn’t suffering. She’d spent the most time inside of the burnt ruins of his cabin; the heat must’ve softened her footpads.

“We will camp here for two or three nights. Your feet should be healed enough to travel by then.”

“Oh, Garsyn!” She coos, pulling her leg away, lunging forward and throwing her arms around the human. “You truly [are] my mate!”

“I will be.” He chuckles, holding her in kind. “Now, you rest. Kyron and I will set up camp.”

With Kyron assisting him, they work diligently throughout the rest of the day, using all the daylight they have left to construct a dome hut. Kyron is inexperienced making such a structure from wood and boughs but he understands the concept and is invaluable in the project. With only a few hours to spare, they load their belongings inside. Sakina crawls through the tiny opening and begins weaving two beds with pine boughs, a thin one and a wide one, while Garsyn and Kyron gather as much firewood as they can carry.

They return just as the dusk is about to become night, when Garsyn’s eyes will no longer serve him. The inside of the hut glows with an inviting amber hue, the small space warmed by the modest fire that Sakina has made using the human’s mystical tools. She’d learned how to use them by watching him. To prove her worth, she’s already begun cooking their meals with hot rocks. That night, they sleep peacefully; Kyron rests by the door with his rifle tucked into his bedroll, an ear always listening for strange sounds, and Garsyn and Sakina sleep in each other’s arms, sharing her bedroll and his coat.

For one full day they sit in the hut and entertain each other with stories and little games. Garsyn learns of their sordid upbringing and their philandering father, then shares a few stories of his own, including a little gem from his youth where he caught his oldest brother, a man who did not live in the small village, in a stable with a Korutan woman of the pony-kin. They were mating atop a bale of hay, despite her belonging to the elderly neighbor next door, who only sent her there to fetch the lesser, four-legged horse that pulled her carriage.

“I suppose he wanted to take her for a ride.” Garsyn laughs.

The day passes quickly, and after losing their thirtieth game of tic-tac-toe to Sakina, Garsyn and Kyron leave the hut to bring back more firewood and relieve themselves. Garsyn urinates beside a tree while Kyron keeps watch. When it’s the human’s turn to keep watch, Kyron insists that he is more capable of protecting himself.

“I have better ears and eyes, and I have [a] rifle.” Kyron assures him, holding up the weapon. “You collect [the] firewood. I [will] return, shortly.”

“Are you sure? I can wait for you.”

“I [do] not want you near [me] when I shit.” Kyron smirks.

“Fair enough.” Garsyn chuckles.

Kyron makes his way into the forest while Garsyn remains behind, passing firewood to Sakina who pokes her head out of the hut. He walks until he can no longer hear the pair, moving in a relatively straight line. With the darkness fast approaching, he uses his claws to blaze a trail in both directions, just in case he becomes lost. When he’s finally certain of his privacy, he sets the rifle against a tree and does his business, only to pause. The wind blows up and over him and sends a shiver up his spine, but not because of the cold.

His fur bristles as he catches the scent of an unfamiliar creature. Seconds later, a voice causes his heart to drop into the pit of his stomach. Moving away from the tree and collecting his rifle, he leaves the blazed trail and ducks into some nearby bushes. The crunching of feet grows steadily louder as the creature walks over fallen twigs and dry leaves. A voice suddenly speaks in a strange, guttural-sounding language that he cannot comprehend.

“Viid! Zheilo’vek biilo zdes!”

Emerging from behind a large tree surrounded by brush, a creature unlike anything Kyron has ever seen reveals himself. The male is about his height and build, but his form is so foreign! It makes Garsyn look normal by comparison! The long, tapering tail, which must contain almost a third of the creature’s body weight, sways slowly behind him as he takes a knee beside Kyron’s droppings. The creature has no fur, only a smooth and somewhat shiny skin that comes in several unnatural colors. His face has a snout, like his own, but it’s wider and rather rectangular.

His body is the color of soil but with swirls of yellow all over, like a mid-day sun had painted his hide. His eyes are as green as some of those strange sen’kamen stones that Garsyn cherishes and his feet have an unusual shape. They’re digitigrade, like his own, but the claws are much larger and the bone structure more angular and bestial. He does not walk on paws with footpads but fleshy talons, like a bird’s feet but with more meat on the bones. His ears are like a human’s but longer and pointed. He knows who this creature is from stories. This is a Sabaarii.

The tips of his ears flop about as he turns his head and speaks to another being who emerges from the woods behind him, a Vostii of the bear-kin. The towering brown bear approaches the smaller creature like a loyal dog. He’s a very imposing sight to behold, muscular and with all the viciousness a bear should possess. The very sight of him makes Kyron quake in his moccasins. He’d never fought one of the polar bear-kin alone but with a group of five. Even then, it was a struggle! This bear is smaller and has different colors, but he’s still more than two-heads taller than Kyron, and with arms as thick as the wolf man’s waist!

“Zdes! Eto yesh’ei gor’chii!” The Sabaarii remarks, holding out a hand and waving it over and around Kyron’s droppings.

The brown bear tilts his head back and sniffs the air. He catches Kyron’s fresh scent but the wind blows in the wrong direction.

“Vostii muzh’chia... Ohn yesh’ei zdes.” The bear speaks in a deep and bellowing voice.

“Mii’ya nai’ru’zhiit, mii’ya za’khatii, il ohn slii’denzia mii’ya alo mer’shmiikh.” The Sabaarii says with a sinister sounding laugh.

“Viid! Dro’zhka!”

If only Kyron could understand their strange tongue. The bear turns and suddenly notices the cuts in the side of the tree, which Kyron had made to find his way back. Fearing the worst, Kyron knows he has nothing left but to fight. Popping out from behind the bushes, he winces in preparation, takes aim and fires. BOOM! The round strikes the bear man in the side of his head, dropping him to the ground in an instant! The rifle’s report is so loud that both Kyron and the Sabaarii, whose ears are also sensitive to the sound, are briefly disoriented.

“Did you hear that?!” Garsyn bolts up, pushing Sakina away from him in the middle of cuddling. “That was a rifle... I have to help Kyron!”

“Here! Take this!” Sakina hands him her rifle and the harmonica pistol.

“I’ll be back. I promise.” Garsyn says, stealing a kiss before scrambling out of the hut and dashing through the darkness.

His eyes adjust very quickly as he never looked directly into the fire, and soon he can see in the pinkish-orange light of dusk, the bright stripes of the cuts that Kyron had made. He only hopes that he can get there in time.

“Mer’shmiikh, Yasheriit!” The Sabaarii shrieks, wincing and swinging wildly at nothing.

Kyron regains his balance before the Sabaarii and waits until his back is turned. With a hand still covering the ear that was closest to the blast, it’s a simple matter to tackle the beast man to the ground. Kyron doesn’t hesitate, taking out his stone dagger and jabbing it into the creature’s neck. Arterial spray shoots out and after about fifteen more seconds of struggle, the Sabaarii falls limp and dies. Kyron pushes himself up and takes a moment to collect himself, only to remember the rifle.

He races back to the weapon and tries to remember how to load it, but it was a complex process with at least three steps, perhaps even four! He begins by pouring powder down the barrel, but he isn’t sure how much. He shoves a bullet in and rams it home, but as he tries to remember the next step, he hears another voice.

“Zdes! Sa’diit! Yii ves’tii!” Another untamed appears, commanding even more beast folk.

Kyron moves away from them, walking parallel to their path of travel only to stop when he sees the glow of a campfire. Peeking over, he’s horrified to see as many as four or five hundred beast folk up in arms! They prepare scouting parties while women and children ready themselves for an attack. This must be the untamed tribe!

“Kyron! Kyron, where are you?!”

Kyron turns his head, his eyes wide with horror at the faint sound of Garsyn’s shouting voice. He struggles to prime the weapon and prepare it for firing as he races to meet his companion, before the hostile beast folk do. Just as he returns to the bodies of the Sabaarii and the bear, Garsyn emerges from the other end of the trail. He sees the Vostii of the wolf-kin, his white and light gray fur all but illuminating him in the rapidly encroaching darkness, only to realize his mistake. His eyes look upon the twitching corpse of the Vostii of the bear-kin and the colorful Sabaarii nearby.

“Kyron!” Garsyn points.

Before he can do anything, Kyron is slammed, thrown aside by a most powerful tackle! He falls, rolls and lands on a knee. His warrior training has come in handy. He turns to see another Vostii of the bear-kin picking up his rifle. The young bear man flashes a sinister grin before pointing the rifle from the hip and pulling the trigger. BOOOOM!!! The rifle explodes in his hands, blowing them off, splitting his gut open and killing the beast man. Kyron had not loaded it properly.

“Come to me! We must return to Sakina!” Garsyn orders before taking aim with a rifle.

BOOM! He fires, striking a Vostii of the bunny-kin who leaps out from the foliage beside Kyron. He catches the round in mid-air, falls and writhes, screaming for help as he gurgles blood from a pierced lung. He will not live through the night.

“Move it!” Garsyn roars, switching to another rifle.

BOOM! He fires just as Kyron rolls and begins to scramble to his feet, shooting another Sabaarii in the chest. This one dies instantly, a fist-sized hole where the lead ball has exited his body. Kyron reaches Garsyn and they prepare to run but Kyron suddenly stops.

“Wait!”

“What?”

“I mark[ed] my way back.”

“WHAT?!”

Three more beast men emerge. Garsyn reacts on instinct; he turns and fires his harmonica pistol, the bar containing six loaded shots. It slowly inches over from one side to the other with every pull of the trigger. After firing four shots and scoring three hits, the beast folk disperse. Garsyn and Kyron both know that they’re about to flank them. Garsyn acts fast and pours gunpowder on the ground, near the tree with the most obvious blaze marking. Using his flint and steel, he sparks the gunpowder trail, setting the tree on fire!

“Why [are] you start[ing a] fire?!”

“I don’t know! It’s all I can think of!”

Hearing a roar, Garsyn turns and shoots a Vostii of the cat-kin in the chest, then fires at another figure who scurries away, into the darkness. The round knocks the bark off a nearby tree, just beside the shadowy figure.

“We have to go! Maybe the fire will cover our tracks?!” Garsyn suggests as he suddenly begins to sprint.

“[The] wind will reveal us.” Kyron replies, running beside the human.

“Damn!”

They return to the hut as quickly as they can only to find Sakina sitting outside; her back leans against the wall beside the little entrance, their satchels packed and lying beside her along with a few water bladders. She’d grabbed everything of value, leaving only the cache of food, some tools and extra water bladders inside. Kyron takes several satchels and loads himself down while Garsyn reaches out a hand for his female.

“Come on.”

“Go...” Sakina whimpers.

“I said ‘come on!’” Garsyn commands, grabbing her wrist.

“I [am] not able to walk.” She cries, pulling her hand away. “Leave me...”

“... What?! NO!!!” Garsyn passes the rifles to Kyron before dropping to his knees. “If they find you, and they will, they will hurt you... They will try to bre-...” He stops, choking up from the thought.

“I know, but if you stay, you [will] die. I care for you. I [do] not want you to die, even for me.”

“I didn’t leave him and I will not leave you!”

“Garsyn!” She pleads.

“Shut up and grab onto me!”

With no help from Kyron, the human grabs Sakina’s arms, turns around and directs her to cling to his chest as he pulls her up and onto his back. He carries her without complaint, moving through the brush as they retreat toward a glacial stream they’d found earlier. Sakina and Kyron can see how sluggish he is with her holding on, but his loyalty to the siblings warms both of their hearts. Once they arrive at the stream, they begin to wade into the water. Just as they do, they can hear the voices of the distant untamed beast folk who’d been following them.

“Oh, by Adonai!” Garsyn exclaims, his legs shaking as he feels the water chilling him. “How long will we need to walk through this?!”

“For [a] long time.” Kyron replies through clenched teeth.

“I [do] not know why you [are] complain[ing]. [The] water feel[s] good on my feet.” Sakina replies, her arms around Garsyn’s neck and her legs around his waist.

By sheer luck or the grace of Garsyn’s God, they somehow manage to wade down the stream before their pursuers can see or hear them. The stream becomes a river and they find themselves all but swimming, the water soaking their weapons and gunpowder and pushing them along with unsettling force as they bob along the surface like corks. Suddenly, Sakina tenses up and Kyron’s expression changes.

“We must leave [the] river!” Kyron turns to Garsyn.

“Did we cover our scent well enough? We don’t want them to find our trail and give chase.” Garsyn replies.

“No! We must leave [the] river, now!” Kyron insists.

“Why?”

“Waterfall!” Sakina whimpers, pointing ahead.

Garsyn focuses his hearing and finally notices the ominous sound of rumbling as the water barrels over the edge. He doesn’t know the area, but from the sound, it could be a very tall waterfall. They wade toward one side, moving closer and closer to the edge, opposite from where they’d entered. They turn a corner and see the mist in the distance, the water tumbling down. Sakina begins to panic, her grip tightening and her arms pushing down on the human who struggles to stay afloat.

Though laden with the satchels and now useless rifles, Kyron is much swifter and manages to swim against the current, which pulls them away from the shore. He grabs onto a log and pulls, then turns to find his companions. His heart pounds from the exertion as much as the fear. He loves his half-sister, and now he also loves the human, the way a younger brother loves his elder sibling or a son loves his father. Garsyn has proven himself loyal, trustworthy and deserving of his admiration, and the thought of losing either of them fills Kyron with dread.

He searches, his eyes wincing as he struggles to see anything alive moving in the thrashing waves. The darkness causes even his superb eyes to strain. Suddenly, a white form bobs to the surface, followed by a familiar head covered in golden hair. They’re alive! Sakina spits out water as she tries to remain calm, shivering and clinging to Garsyn like a frightened child whilst the human struggles to make it to shore.

“Take my hand!” Kyron shouts over the sound of the waterfall.

He drops their gear on the shore, dashes along the log and squats atop it. With one hand holding a thick branch, the other reaches out to them. Garsyn and Sakina both kick their legs, trying to fight against the current. They move closer to the end of the log only to move past it. Garsyn reaches out a hand but misses! Kyron leans even closer. Sakina pushes Garsyn down and all but leaps for her half-brother’s hand. She grabs on and squeezes tightly! Kyron begins to pull, fearful that he’s failed the human.

His heart soars as he pulls her closer; Sakina has hooked an arm under Garsyn’s and drags him along. With all the strength he has, Kyron somehow manages to walk along the log and pulls the pair ashore. The Vostii female and the human lie on the wet, cold ground and spit up a few mouthfuls of water as they catch their breath. Sakina turns to Garsyn and embraces him, her body shaking from the cold as much from the prospect of losing her soon-to-be mate. Garsyn curls an arm, embracing her and nuzzling her cold, pink nose before giving her a kiss.

“You saved me, Sakina! I owe you my very life!”

“You save[d] me, first.” She flashes a toothy grin.

“You’re so cold. We need to get warm.” He remarks.

“Yes, when we [are] certain we [are] safe.” Kyron says, standing over them and offering a hand.

“You return[ed] for us.” Sakina looks up at her half-brother.

“Why would I not?! We [are a] family, we [are a] tribe.” Kyron smiles, taking hold of Garsyn’s hand, pulling him up. “I [will] not ever abandon you.” He adds, turning to Sakina and pulling her up as well.

“You’re a good man, Kyron... Thank you.” Garsyn says before embracing the Vostii male.

Kyron stands with his arms at his sides, taken aback by the show of affection. Despite his shock, his tail begins to wag, and a smile graces his face. Sakina joins them and the trio share a group hug, thankful to be alive. Once they’ve calmed themselves, they check their belongings. To Garsyn’s delight, Sakina made sure to save their currency and every zakian and sen’kamen is accounted for. Unfortunately, their weapons are now useless, the gunpowder being completely soaked. They keep them, anyway.

They walk throughout the night, putting as much distance between themselves and the untamed tribe as they possibly can. Kyron and Sakina lead the human in the dark. A part of him worries that they’ll allow him to stumble, just for laughs, but they never do; they’re as loyal as loyal can be. Progress is slow but consistent, and when dawn finally approaches, they’re forced to make camp. They have no energy to build any shelters besides a simple debris hut, and they’ve been forced to abandon most of their gear, including their warm bedrolls. A small fire a distance in front of the pine bough and leaf hut radiates warmth.

They sleep throughout the day and night, awakening just before dawn on the following day. A routine develops, and for three more days they hike until they’re exhausted, moving in the general direction of the city that Garsyn had spoken of. Kyron and Sakina never lose their faith in the human’s leadership, which eventually pays off. On the sixth day of travel, Kyron is sitting beside their campfire, as they’d decided to make camp early. Sakina sits beside a tree, her footpads still raw but slowly healing.

They hear a noise and smell the scent of a human but this scent is different. Just when they raise their guard, a man emerges, holding a rifle and wearing strange clothes made of metal. He shouts a command in the same strange language that the untamed beast folk where speaking. Before he has time to do anything else, Garsyn emerges from the behind trees, where he’d been searching for wild edibles. He promptly explains himself to the human warrior.

“Oh, thank ‘The One’ you’ve come!” He begins.

“Who are these Vostii and who are you?!” The warrior demands.

“We’re the only survivors of an attack! I see the insignia on your armor. Are you from The Amethyst City?!”

“I am...”

“The tribe of untamed beast folk found our village in the north. We were attacked by night and nearly all were killed. Only I and my Vostii companions escaped the burning.” Garsyn continues.

“I see no collars or tags on these beast folk.”

“They were not wearing them in my house.” Garsyn swiftly lies. “We often allow our beasts to roam without them, for their comfort.”

“A foolish thing to do...” The warrior’s lips contort with disapproval, his rifle lowering.

“Yes, but they’re very good and trustworthy! Kyron and Sakina have both saved my life. I wouldn’t be here if not for them.” Garsyn smiles at the pair, kneeling beside them.

“Why did they not answer me?”

“When I first found them, they had fled from the great arctic plateau. They speak our tongue.”

“Really?!” The warriors gasps.

“Yes.” Kyron nods.

“Hello!” Sakina chirps, waving with her clawed fingertips.

“Well, I do apologize, sir! How can we help?!”

“We?” Sakina cocks her head.

“I’m a scout for a larger party. We have food, water, medicines and wagons.”

“We would be eternally grateful if you would help us to reach the city. We must report the attack and warn outlying settlements, before it’s too late.” Garsyn turns to the warrior.

“Right. When was this attack?”

“We’ve been walking for days, it seems.”

“Six.” Kyron answers.

“No time to waste! Follow me!”

The man in the armor was not lying, and the trio find themselves on an earthen road, cleared by many countless wagons and horses. The Vostii’s eyes widen at the sight of the men in armor and carrying rifles and blades as long as their legs. Some also have bows which sit horizontally atop rifle stocks. The warrior introduces Garsyn to his commander, who in turn offers to take the trio immediately to “The Amethyst City.” They climb aboard a supply wagon, eating a simple but delectable meal of smoked jerky, berries and flatbread while listening to the soldiers’ banter with each other.

It’s a calm and serene scene: an emerald field leads to the massive village of pastel lavender stone, rich brown rooftops and teal-tinted glass. The human’s civilization contrasts and yet blends with nature, humbling the Vostii who, only a month ago, were living simple lives in a frigid wasteland with a painful, white backdrop. This land is so much more vivid and hospitable! Upon entering the city, they’re bombarded by many different sights, sounds and smells, but Garsyn’s comforting presence keeps them from being overwhelmed. Garsyn reports to a man above the commander, who scrawls on parchment with quill and ink.

Garsyn proclaims to have had possession of the Vostii siblings for more than two seasons, and proclaims that they briefly fought the untamed before escaping with only what they were found carrying, though he makes no mention of the currency they’d taken from the burnt wreckage of the villager’s homes, hidden in a pouch tucked behind his belt. Sakina and Kyron do not question his tactics and only speak when the “General” wishes to confirm that they can indeed understand the human’s tongue. He seems more amused by their ability to communicate than hearing their side of the story, and that’s fine with them!

When all is said and done, they find themselves standing on a street corner while Garsyn adjusts the collars and tags that they’re legally required to wear. Though he must proclaim ownership of them, he takes no pleasure in it and quietly apologizes. However, Sakina is more than delighted to be considered the human’s property. To her, that’s very similar to being his mate. Kyron also sees it similarly; this new collar and tag is a symbol that Garsyn has accepted him, and he now has a family who loves and cares for him, albeit a very small one.

With currency to spare, they stop at a market bazaar and purchase more food and a room in a hotel. That evening, Garsyn and Sakina make passionate love to each other, and Kyron enjoys a fine meal and a rich dessert in the small restaurant downstairs. When he returns to their room, he finds the lovers asleep. For a moment, he envies them and begins to dwell on Lyra, who’s charred bones likely sit alone in the arctic wasteland. With a soft sigh, he creeps into the room so that he may rest in a human bed for the first time in his life.

Sakina’s ear twitches as he quietly closes the door. She opens her eyes, her back against Garsyn’s chest. A smile graces her lips as her fingers coil, her claws softly scratching the flesh of the human’s forearm, which rests across her body and just beneath her breasts.

“Garsyn claim[s] me.” She whispers to Kyron.

“Oh?”

“Yes. I [will] become his mate. We [will] perform [the] ceremony, tomorrow. He promise[d].”

“I [am] happy for you.” Kyron smiles.

She can see how he feigns his delight, and his forced smile soon fades. She lifts her head and looks to him with concern as he thinks back to the reason for this entire situation. He lost his lover, a female whom he mated with often and passionately. At first, she was just a moment of pleasure, not exactly an uncommon situation for a Vostii to find themselves in, but by the time they were caught they’d been mating in secret for many weeks; he truly cared for her. Sakina sees her brother’s sorrow and her lips curl into a frown.

“All will be well...” She whispers to him.

“Oh?” Kyron looks to her with gloomy eyes.

“We [have] survive[d]. We [are] in [a] new home with many humans to protect us. Garsyn protect[s] us, and my mate [has] promise[d] that we [will] find peace.”

“...”

“We [will] travel west, to [a] place he call[s] ‘Zhanai.’ All will be well.” She assures him.

“And [what of] my future?” Kyron’s lips contort with a mixture of fear and jealousy as he looks upon his sister, lying beside her new mate.

“You [are] alive. You have breath. There [is a] chance for happiness, in time. There [are] other females waiting for you.” She speaks softly and confidently.

“I [do] not want other females...” He grumbles.

“Lyra [is] gone. I know you [are] hurt[ing] but you have much life still to live, and I think Lyra [would] not want you to suffer. She [would] want you to live and find [an]other mate.”

“You might be correct.” Kyron sighs and hangs his head.

“Of course I [am] correct. Your future [is] bright. All [of] our future[s are] bright.”

“But I [am] not sure if I [am] ready to search for [an]other mate.” He adds, covering his eyes.

“You will, in time.” She insists.

Sakina wriggles a bit as she closes her eyes, quickly drifting off to sleep in Garsyn’s arms. Kyron lies down on a most comfortable bed, paid for by his human companion. He’s never felt so safe and secure as he does in that moment, and though he still mourns Lyra, he begins to wonder if Sakina is right. Perhaps his future does hold happiness and companionship, beyond living in subordination to his alpha? As his mind wanders, he also falls asleep, overcome by everything that has occurred these past few months.

Garsyn is true to his word, and with the wealth they’d gathered from the ruins of his former village he can easily afford the journey, and a fresh start for all three of them. With the stains from the sacred berries still staining their chins, Garsyn and Sakina, his Vostii bride, sit in their new wagon, bonded in mind, body, heart and soul. Kyron looks out of a window, rocking with the cart as he peers into the distant horizon. He wears a smile on his face, and for the first time in a long time it’s genuine.

Garsyn had confided in him. He knew the warrior’s pain and showed sympathy and support. Did Sakina whisper Kyron’s feelings into his ear? He promised that if Kyron found a mate befitting him, Garsyn would ensure that he could have her. The human has never lied to him or his half-sister, who sits beside her mate and rests her head on his shoulder, watching him drive their wagon. With a flick of his wrists, he compels the four-legged horses to move faster, bringing them to a comfortable gait. Kyron turns to the city, watching it slowly fading into the distance as the strong draft horses pull them along.

“How long until we arrive?” Sakina asks her mate, her chin on his shoulder as she looks to him.

“A few months. We’re lucky it’s spring. The summer can be very hot in central Morveria.”

Garsyn turns to her and smiles as he feels her breath on his face. She looks up at him with her big, pretty eyes and bats her eyelashes, only for him to steal a kiss. The human turns even more and looks behind him. Kyron leans back against their many supplies, his feet dangling from the back of the wagon and swaying in an innocent and childlike manner. Feeling the human’s gaze, he turns back, and the two men share a look and then a head nod. As Garsyn returns his focus to their horses, Kyron and Sakina look to each other.

Her smile widens as she sees the optimism in her half-brother, who no longer forces his smile. As she looks ahead and snuggles up to her mate, Kyron continues to watch the shrinking village whilst his mind contemplates the wonders that await them in the west. Sakina was right. Their future is bright...