by Connor Crowe
I closed my eyes. The die was set.
“So it is,” Markus spoke. His eyes were mournful, his voice full of finality. “So it shall be.”
10
Tristan
“Are you serious, Markus?” Lionel asked, incredulous. “You’re going to let them go it alone?”
Markus brushed off his comment. “They will not be alone.” He turned then to the three of us, giving us each a knowing look. “They will have each other.”
His gaze rested a little longer on Hugo, who was standing next to me. “Take good care of them,” Markus commanded.
Hugo bowed his head. “I will, Alpha. You have my word.”
“Come back to us safe and sound. And with the Key intact, if you can at all manage it.” Markus folded his hands in a gesture of respect and good tidings. “We will be waiting.”
“What are you going to do in the meantime?” I asked. The thought of leaving them behind was still twisting in my gut like a knife, but the others had it right—this was the only way.
“We will continue our work here on the ground,” Markus assured me. “We will set up a guard and send word back to Nox Bay about the developments. They will need our help more than ever with the collapse of the dam.” He shook his head, but not before a brief moment of terror passed over his face.
Right. His mate and new child were still there. Please, I whispered under my breath. Let them be all right.
“Rest assured, we will not be idle.”
“Well,” Hugo said, standing and walking over to Markus and the others. “Looks like this is it.” He stuck out his hand and shook firmly with Markus. “Thank you. For all that you’ve done for me and for my kin. Thank you for being the sort of leader this world needs.”
Markus gave him a gracious smile. “Thank you for putting your trust in our pack. I know many have gotten the wrong idea about our people, and for good reason—it keeps us safe from those who would do us harm. But I am glad that we had the chance to get to know each other. And I am glad that you gave our pack a chance to serve you. We are stronger together than we ever are apart.”
Hugo nodded in assent, then stepped away, hands clasped behind his back.
Finally, it was my turn. I stepped toward the man I’d come to call my Pack Alpha. The memories flooded in fast and relentless now, all the way back to the daring rescue him and his men had pulled to get us out of the Black Hands.
Nothing I thought of was good enough to express how I really felt. How could I tell him, in so few words, how much his kindness had meant to me? “You’ve been good to me,” I said at last. “And the other refugees.” I grinned through the grief and regret of times long past. “You know, this place, these people...was actually starting to feel like family.”
Markus held my hand a second longer, then reached out to brace against my forearm. I did the same with him, linking ourselves together. A measure of the utmost trust for their pack. A gesture of brotherhood. Of family.
“You will always be family here,” Markus assured me. “Now go and finish this. We will be waiting to welcome you home.”
“Your real home,” Lionel piped up. “Not those assholes in the sky that think they own you.”
“That’s right,” James agreed, coming to my side. He took my left hand. Hugo took my right. And for that moment, it felt like the three of us could conquer anything.
That place up there? It may have been home once upon a time, but I knew now in my heart that it was home no longer. Everything I needed was right next to me.
I sniffed and squinted my eyes shut, emotion rising in my chest. I wasn’t used to such acceptance. Such affection. Never got it from my birth family. Definitely didn’t get it in the Black Hands. It was all I’d ever wanted. All I’d ever dreamed of.
And here it was, right in front of me.
For once in my life, I felt like I belonged.
“Oh, come on!” Kit quipped, breaking up the tension. “You guys are acting like you’re never gonna see each other again. Lighten up!”
Kit, ever the cheerful one. I couldn’t help but smile at his casual demeanor. He always knew how to lighten the mood. Yes, we were about to embark on a very dangerous mission. One that I wasn’t fully sure we’d return from. But acting like we were already dead wasn’t going to help anyone.
To expect failure, my mentor in the Black Hands always told me, is to invite it into your home.
And that was the last thing we needed right now.
So we gathered our supplies, said our goodbyes, and at last, we were ready to leave. I threw up a hand in farewell and Markus echoed the gesture.
“Be well,” he said, and I tried to commit those words to memory. “Be safe.”
I took a deep breath and let it out, stretching my shoulders and preparing for the flight. I turned to my two mates. “You ready?”
“As I’ll ever be,” James said.
“Let’s do this,” Hugo agreed.
“All right, James. You’re with me.” I waved him over to my side. “You ever flown before?”
James blanched, his next words coming out in a stutter. “Um, no, but...”
I grinned. “Good! Then you haven’t had time to chicken out yet. Stand back!”
I threw caution to the winds and let my gryphon out to play, handing myself over to the shift. The soul of the gryphon rose within me and mingled with my spirit, till he and I were the same. My body changed. My senses sharpened.
Claws. Wings. Feathers.
Not to mention the proud, powerful beak of my people.
In gryphon form, I felt alive. And with my two men next to me, I didn’t think it could get any better.
My talons dug into the dirt and I stretched my wings to their full span. I didn’t take my eyes off James the whole time. His reaction fascinated me. First fear, then surprise, then awe, then...what was that...lust?
Plenty of time for that later.
“Wow,” James breathed when he found his voice. “You...it...” He stumbled over the words. Shook himself, as if out of a trance. “You’re amazing.”
“And that’s only half of our little shifter team,” Hugo reminded James, moving into his own open patch of grass. “Now it’s my turn!” He planted his feet firmly, watched us with careful eyes, but at first, nothing happened.
“I’m still a bit shaky at this,” he said meekly. It was the first time I’d seen a lapse in that unbreakable confidence alphas always seemed to have. “I’m gonna take my dragon form, but it’s been hard to control lately. You saw what happened back at the cliff face...” His voice trailed off.
“We are right here,” James reminded him.
“Always,” I echoed.
That seemed to settle him, because the flames of his soul came to the forefront, and the transformation began.
Wings of fire sprouted from his back and stretched out, even wider and stronger than mine. His eyes, once a soft brown, turned to liquid gold. The pupils morphed into reptilian slits. Green scales rippled across his body, skin switching out for something stronger. Tougher. His fingers lengthened and sharpened, turning into razor sharp claws. With a roar that shook the forest, he landed on four feet, pawing the ground.
If James had been in awe about my shift, he looked like he was about to faint from Hugo’s. Hugo was an alpha, after all, and they generally had much more powerful forms. Add to that the fact that he was a dragon, and a rare hybrid shifter to boot, and he would knock anyone’s metaphorical socks off.
James tore his eyes away from Hugo and stepped toward me, his arm outstretched. He was shaking a little, but that didn’t matter. His bravery astounded me.
“Hey,” James whispered. He didn’t take his eyes off me.
I bowed my head, bending at the knees so that my large frame was closer to eye level. “Hello, James.” I projected the thought into his mind. I had heard that mates could do such things, but as for having two mates? Didn’t know if that would work or not.
He must have heard me, because hi
s eyes widened in recognition.
“You’re...” James breathed. He seemed to be at a loss for words. “You’re beautiful. Can I...?” His hand crept closer, still shaking.
“Yes,” I said. “You may touch.”
The moment his hand touched the cool, stony texture of my beak, he drew in a sharp gasp. But he didn’t draw away. He ran his hand over my beak, brushed the feathers on my neck, trailed down to my proud, powerful wings. Like the caress of a lover.
“Wow.”
“I won’t hurt you,” I promised him. “I will never hurt you.”
James turned away for a moment, looking at Hugo this time.
“Why can’t I ride him?” James asked me. I assumed he meant Hugo.
Amusing implications aside, I did my best to answer. “It’s...” I didn’t want to put words in Hugo’s mouth, but we all knew that he’d been a little unstable lately. “It’s not safe,” I said at last. “At least, not right now. Not until we figure things out. You’ll be better off with me for now.”
James nodded in understanding, but I didn’t miss the disappointment in his gaze. “Will I ever be able to ride him?” He asked, then stopped in his tracks, blushing. “Um, you know what I mean.”
This time, I couldn’t help but indulge him. “I’m sure he’s looking forward to it.” I opened and closed one of my eyes in a rough approximation of a wink.
I couldn’t hear whatever Hugo must have said, but James turned so red I thought he might explode right then and there.
Oh, this was going to be fun. Double-team teasing our little omega was just about the most adorable thing, especially when he blushed like that.
“Come along,” I offered after I’d regained my composure. I bent lower to the ground so he could reach. “You’ll want to climb up and settle yourself over my wings.”
“Here goes nothing,” James grunted. He clambered up my side and only yanked out a few feathers. I kept still. That is, until he started losing his balance.
“Easy,” I muttered, switching my weight from one foot to the other. It steadied him well enough for him to get another handhold, and with a few more awkward steps, he was settled.
“Whew.” James let out a breath. “That’s...not as easy as it looks.”
“It will get easier,” I promised him. “You ready?”
James leaned forward, wrapping his arms around my neck and squeezing his thighs against my torso. “Hey,” he started curiously. “Are you sure I don’t need a saddle or something? What if I fall?”
If gryphons could laugh, I would have. Instead I settled for letting out a snort through my beak.
I couldn’t resist the chance to tease him. “What can I say?” I quipped. “I like it bareback.”
“Wha—whoa!” James’s voice cut off into a squeak as I leapt into the air and spread my wings. He clung to me for dear life as we rose higher. I felt his fear and apprehension rumbling off of him in waves, but after a few moments, there was something else there too.
Wonder.
“You okay up there?” I asked.
“Y...yeah.” The words came at last. “Yeah. I’m good. This is...Tristan, I’ve never seen anything so beautiful.”
His words were filled with such admiration and wonder my heart ached. The thought flooded into my mind as soon as he said it, but I didn’t dare speak the words aloud.
So are you, James. So are you.
We soared higher still, with Hugo on our tail. The flight this time was not out of panic. Not out of control. We were together, we were on a mission, and soon we’d set foot on my old homeland of Ataraxis.
I didn’t know what we were about to run into up there, but I promised myself that no matter what happened, I would look after my mates.
Plural.
No shifter had set foot on Ataraxis in years, and yet here we were. Two outcast shifters and one exiled gryphon, off to save the world.
11
James
Flying was like nothing I’d ever experienced before.
Was it scary? Definitely.
But was it a beautiful, powerful moment that I would remember for the rest of my life? Absolutely.
The ground fell away and grew smaller and smaller, leaving the party we’d left behind like miniature figurines. The trees became no more than green dots, and the vast plains stretched out around us.
It was incredible.
“What do you think?” Tristan called over the roar of the wind, and I wasn’t sure if he’d said it aloud or in my mind.
For a moment, I was speechless.
“It’s...amazing.” I managed at last.
“Hang on!” He cried, and his wings beat even more furiously. We gained altitude quickly now and the air chilled around me. We wolves were no stranger to winter, but I’d never been this high up in the sky before. I shivered.
Hugo flew at our side, his proud, powerful wings cutting through the air without a hint of chill.
“Almost there—look!”
I craned my neck upward and my mouth fell open. Sure, it had looked pretty large from the ground, but up here...it was massive. practically a nation unto itself.
Hugo grew closer, shouting over the winds.
“Where’s the entrance?”
“Just follow me!”
We flew closer and through a band of clouds. The water vapor clung to my clothes and chilled me even more, but I didn’t mind. I was about to set foot on a place no wolf ever had. I would be telling my children about this one day...
Children. The thought rippled through me and sent chills down my spine. This time, it wasn’t from the cool air. As much as I tried to focus on my work and not worry about personal matters, I was an omega. And with Tristan being unable to bear children, I wondered...
“Hey, look out!” Tristan yelped, and I ducked my head just in time. We passed under an archway, through a narrow tunnel, and when we emerged, there it was: the mythical city.
I realized as we came closer that it was not one single land mass like I’d thought it was. How would a piece of land so large float in the air like that, anyway? I noticed now that we drew closer that it was a combination of puttering machinery, connected by swinging rope bridges and hanging with vines. The “land” wasn’t earth at all.
They were ships.
“It’s not an island,” I muttered in awe. The ships varied in size and shape, but they all connected to a larger one in the middle. The hub, it seemed, while innumerable spokes jutted off in all directions. Swinging bridges connected each location like an intricate spider web.
What stole my breath more than anything else, though, was the hub. Not just a simple platform like some of the others, it towered ever higher into the sky, its golden spires stretching for the heavens. The ship was a huge sphere with a flattened top, and buildings sprouted up on the surface. Tall skyscrapers of gold and glass glittered in the sunlight and threw rays of color through the clouds.
“Whoa,” I breathed, and Tristan slowed to a halt behind a formation of clouds. He landed on one of the outlying platforms and I took a moment to thank my lucky stars for solid ground.
Well, as solid as we were gonna get up here, anyway.
“Here we are,” Tristan muttered. His voice was steady, but I felt the apprehension ripple through him. “Home sweet home.” He bit off the words with no small amount of malice.
“What’s the plan?” Hugo asked, coming to perch beside us.
“We’ve got to be careful,” Tristan said. “It’s still early, there won’t be many people out and about yet, but we need to keep from being seen as much as possible.” He tilted his head toward Hugo and I. “And you’ll need to shift back into human form, of course. Can’t have them seeing a wolf and dragon around here.”
“Of course,” Hugo said. “Shall we shift now, or?”
“Might as well. Keep to your human forms and follow my lead. We’ll need to reach the Hub, but it’s not gonna be an easy journey. Just let me do the talking and stay on your guard. Got it
?”
“Got it,” I said, and slipped off of Tristan’s back onto the bronze riveted platform. I swayed at first, unused to the feeling of floating. My stomach churned and I doubled over, heaving.
Oh god. Oh god. We were so far up! With no safety net, nothing to catch me if I fell...
“James!” Hugo was beside me in an instant, his strong grip crushing me. “Keep it together.”
I stumbled to a halt, letting the alpha ground me. I took in a slow, deep breath. Then another. Eventually, the world stopped spinning.
“Thanks,” I muttered. “Sorry, I’m just not used to this.” I waved my hand around us.
Hugo fixed me with a calming smile. “It’s okay. You’re the only one among us that isn’t a flyer. You must be terrified.”
I choked out a nervous laugh. “That’s one way to put it.”
“Just keep your eyes ahead, okay? Don’t look down.”
“Easy for you to say,” I grumbled.
“Will it help if I hold your hand?” Hugo asked, his eyes shining.
If I say yes, does that make me a wimp?
“Yes,” I said through the blush coloring my cheeks. “I’d like that.”
Tristan transformed back into human form as well and took my other hand. The warmth of both their bodies flowed into me and soothed away the anxiety. Here, with both of my men by my side, I could do this. We could do this.
“We’re in this together, remember?” Tristan reminded me.
“Right,” I agreed, and squeezed his hand. “Let’s do this.”
It took me a while to find my footing at first, but having Tristan and Hugo at my side helped. I didn’t know what I would have done without them. Puked and fallen over the edge, probably. We crept further into town, staying to the back alleys and empty bridges. The closer we got to the Hub, though, the more people we encountered. Most of them didn’t give us a second look, too absorbed in their own affairs to care.
