Page 56 of Unleashed

The valos wore concerned frowns, and all three touched her at the same time — one hand on her thigh, one on her right forearm, one on her left shoulder. That physical contact grounded her.

“Did you hear the calls again?” Balir asked.

“Yes. They were…urgent. They need us to come now.”

“We’ve stocked ourselves well,” Aduun said, “and we know the storm will not break. We were nearing the time when we would have left, as it was.”

They stoked the fire, and even Vortok was restrained as they ate a light breakfast. No one spoke more than a few words. They were all aware of the potential hardships that awaited.

The silence was a complete change from the evening before. After they’d cleaned themselves of dirt, blood, and…othersubstances, they’d gathered around the fire and told stories of their tribe’s history while sharing a warm meal. The stories continued well after their portions were gone, and Nina had helped Vortok finish the hide clothing as they talked, laughed, and imagined scenes from tales that might’ve seemed too outlandish to be true were it not for the awe-inspiring things they’d all seen on Sonhadra. When it was time to sleep, the valos had curled up next to her, bodies pressed together with hers for warmth. Their hands had been restless, roaming over her freely.

She’d drifted to sleep when her weariness finally outweighed the pleasure of their touches, but she couldn’t remember dreaming. Only those voices…

There was something different about them this time. She’d heard their desperation, felt their hunger, but beneath that, she’d detected…impatience. It was likely a normal reaction to knowing help was on the way after so many years spent in a terrible situation, but she couldn’t shake a feeling of wrongness even though logic said it was an insignificant observation.

As Aduun left their shelter to gather their food stores, Nina dressed in her new hides. The material was soft but durable enough to protect her from the cold. With shaggy fur still attached on the outside, her movements would be slightly hindered, but she’d gladly trade some grace for warmth.

“The clothes are wonderful, Vortok,” Nina said, grinning up at him. She stepped closer, grasped the mane fur beneath his chin, and pulled him down for a kiss. “Thank you.”

He returned the kiss enthusiastically, if a bit roughly, and smiled down at her when she pulled away. “Hopefully this is just one of many.”

“Kisses or clothes?”

“Both.”

Nina chuckled. As she turned to gather her things, Balir leaned in and pressed his mouth to hers. Before breaking the kiss, he slid the tip of his long, pointed tongue along her lips.

He leaned back. “Vortok can’t hoard them all.”

Her cheeks heated. His kiss roused memories of what his tongue had done between her thighs, but she pushed her desires aside. They needed to leave. Even if they were unable to find time to be intimate along their journey, they’d have plenty of opportunities to explore their affections once they made it out of this place.

After they’d collected all their provisions, they crawled out of the shelter and into the storm. Wind and snow blasted Nina, whipping her hair across her face. Brushing snow off her legs, she stepped forward, allowing Balir and Vortok adequate space to emerge behind her. Aduun already stood outside waiting.

He handed the simple bag Vortok had crafted to Balir, who slung it over his shoulder with the strap across his chest.

“Ride with Nina,” Aduun said. “Share warmth with her and help her guide us. It will be faster if we travel as beasts, as deep as the snow has become.”

Nina didn’t want to watch them shift — she didn’t want to see their pain any more than she wanted to feel it — but she couldn’t bring herself to look away as Vortok and Aduun’s forms altered. This was her first clear view of Aduun as a beast.

He was what they all referred to as a quillbeast; she’d never seen one before him, had never heard of such a creature, and he was both magnificent and terrifying. His quills were even larger and more pronounced as a beast, sweeping back from his head, neck, and shoulders. His body was long, his front shoulders and legs powerfully muscled, with large paws and wicked black claws. His thick tail moved from side to side as though with impatience. Dark stripes ran over the fur of his back and legs.

Her closest references came from memories Quinn had shared with her — memories of Earth animals Nina would never see in person. Aduun was like a mixture of the creatures Quinn knew as hyenas, tigers, and porcupines, but larger and more intimidating than any of the three.

When their changes were complete, Balir helped Nina up onto Vortok’s back and leapt up behind her. He removed the heavy fur cloak from her shoulders and swung it around his own before he slid forward. Pressing himself to her back, he wrapped her in his arms, enfolding them both in the cloak. She shifted to find a slightly more comfortable position and dropped her hands to grasp Vortok’s thick mane.

The snowstorm had maintained its intensity during their days in the shelter, and it showed no signs of easing. The ground was white and the sky dull gray as far as she could see — which wasn’t far, thanks to the whirling snowflakes in the air.

Nina was a little sad to leave the shelter. However crude its construction, it was theirs, and they’d found contentment within it together.

After a moment’s concentration, she determined the direction of the voices and pointed Vortok toward them. He snorted, lightly shaking his head from side to side to cast snow off his mane and started forward. The snow was deep, but it was no match for his size and strength; he pressed on at a brisk pace. Nina kept her head down to protect her face from the wind and snow. The brief exposure she’d experienced while getting onto Vortok’s back had been enough to bring stinging pain to her cheeks.

Balir seemed to sense her discomfort; he adjusted his hold on the cloak, raising it to block her face from the biting wind. She brushed her hand along his arm.

“Thank you,” she said.

They rode for a long while; she had no means by which to gauge the passage of time, but at least she was protected from the worst of the wind’s bite. Were Vortok and Aduun warm enough as they were? Could some of the hides have gone to shield them from the elements?

A pang of guilt struck her. She knew it wasn’t her fault, but she couldn’t help feeling like a burden. They had delayed over the last few days to counteract her shortcomings. As much as they hungered, the valos could go indefinitely without food or water, and though the cold was uncomfortable to Balir, she doubted it could kill him like it almost killed her.

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