Chapter 12 - Wolves

The next morning, Toffan served Tlen and Serenity breakfast before they left. The wind had die down considerably and the snow wasn't falling anymore, despite the clouds that lingered above their heads. Serenity felt refreshed, better than she had in days. She walked outside in the crisp, cold air and waved goodbye to Toffan. After adjusting her pack on her back, she started following Tlen, who had already left a couple minutes ago.

The snow was still deep, but the going was easier without the wind blowing in their faces. Occasionally the sun could be seen poking through the dark clouds.

So far, the day had been uneventful. The only surprising thing that had happened was a squirrel tried to attack another squirrel, and in the process, fell off the tree and into the snow.

That was also the only sign of life they'd seen. Tlen was actually getting nervous that Zarayne's creatures hadn't shown themselves. Zarayne was defiantly cooking up something, but Tlen didn't have a clue as to what it might be.

Tlen would glance over his shoulder every now and then to see how Serenity was doing. She seemed much stronger than she had the other day. Maybe it was just because the snow and wind weren't there to sap her energy.

He also noticed just how pretty she was. He knew he couldn't get attached to her; it would only mean death for both of them, and Fayrah. But he couldn't stop his feelings. At least he could keep them from showing.

Serenity, on the other hand, was concentrating on her Earth Keeper power by slightly moving trees or lifting small, snow covered boulders. So far, she was succeeding, and this made her proud. She was glad she wasn't completely useless.

Tlen never noticed what she was doing. If he had, he would've stopped her. Because the next thing to move was the ear of a far off wolf with glowing red eyes.

The next stone Serenity picked up mentally, she tried throwing. It almost hit Tlen, but he sidestepped and caught it. He whirled around to face Serenity, his eyes wide.

“What are you doing? Zarayne can track us whenever you use your-”

He was interrupted by a series of howls, coming from every direction. Tlen grabbed Serenity's hand and ran as fast as he could. Serenity desperately tried to stay caught up, but stumbled. She cursed inwardly at herself for being so stupid. She knew Tlen had told her that already, and she'd threatened both their lives by forgetting.

The howls were closer now. Much closer.

Tlen and Serenity came up to a small cliff, but couldn't stop in time. Serenity hit Tlen hard in the back and the two went sprawling off the edge. Tlen was the first to fall through the layers of snow and hit the ground. Then Serenity, desperately trying not to scream and give away their position, fell on top of him.

When she rolled off and looked up, she noticed they were deep under the snow. If she stood up, the snow would still be at least three feet above her. She would have stayed and wondered why it was so deep here and not up there, but Tlen was urgently grabbing her hand.

“Start tunneling through the snow.” The wolves would find them if they didn't try and cover up their tracks, so Serenity started digging while Tlen used snow to cover up the hole.

Feeling she was deep enough into the snow, Serenity dug a small hole, big enough for her and Tlen to sit in. Sitting down with her knees hugged to her chest, she watched as Tlen crawled in. He sat down next to her.

“I'm sorry. I…I…” She whispered. Serenity tried to find the find words but gave up. Tears filled her big, dark eyes as frustration and sadness filled her heart. Tlen looked at her with understandment in his white eyes. He put his arm around her reassuringly and pulled her closer.

Then they heard growls coming from above their heads. When they looked up, they could see the shadows of several wolves walking directly above them. It was a wonder that they didn't sink all the way through the snow into the small bubble in the snow.

The growls grew into howls and the shadows moved back and forth above them. Serenity leaned closer to Tlen, trying desperately to control her breathing while Tlen held her comfortingly. When Serenity closed her eyes, she could practically see the wolves tearing them apart, so she kept them open.

The two sat under the freezing snow while the shadows came and left. The wolves seemed to know where they were, but not enough to go tunneling through the snow and find them.

Hours seemed to tick by as fear continued to hold onto Serenity's heart. Tlen had his free hand on the handle of the dagger in his boot. Well, at least one of them.

Finally, after what seemed to be days, the wolves stopped pacing, lifted up their heads and bounded off in another direction. Letting out a breath Serenity didn't know she was holding, she realized how hungry she was. When she looked back up, she noticed how dark it was.

Tlen released his grip on both the dagger and Serenity's shoulder and reached for his pack instead. He pulled out enough food for both of them and gave half to Serenity. She ate it half-heartedly.

After they'd finished eating Tlen said, “We need to get out of here, the sooner the better. Those wolves will come back, but this time they'll have larger numbers. Besides, the sir can't get in here very easily.”

So Tlen laid on his back with his knees in the air and started to dig upwards. Snow fell on his face but he kept digging. Serenity followed suit and started to dig too. A while later, they were able to kneel, then squat, and then finally stand. The air by now was starting to get thin, making it hard to breath, let alone dig.

The snow still reached far above both their heads, so Tlen grabbed Serenity around the waist and lifted her up so she could dig higher. Finally she reached the outside air and climbed out carefully. Holding onto a nearby tree, Serenity pulled Tlen out.

Their legs sunk deep into the snow, making walking even more difficult than before. Getting a foot out of the snow was almost as difficult as bringing it forward.

After a few fruitless steps, Serenity sat down in the snow and said, “Why don't we dig beneath the snow. The wolves won't be able to see us and if another blizzard comes around, we'll be safe.”

Tlen nodded. “The only thing I can't figure out is why I didn't think of that.” Serenity smiled and trudged back to the hole they'd made when getting out of the snow. She half fell half jumped into the small opening. Tlen came crashing after her, almost falling directly on top of her.

So the two continued digging, but this time they dug sideways in the direction they'd been going before. Tlen went first, pushing through the wet, cold snow and making it easier for Serenity.

Progress was slow, but faster than traveling above the snow.

After digging and walking for about two hours into the night, Serenity tripped on a pile of snow and let out a little squeak. Tlen heard and turned around just as Serenity fell on top of him. The two fell to the ground, face to face. Serenity's cheeks burned crimson red and she hurriedly got off of him.

“I…uh…sorry…I…uh,” Serenity stuttered. She could feel her cheeks glowing and knew they must stand out against the white snow.

Tlen got up after her and but his cheeks were about just as red as Serenity's. “It's okay…I…um…I.” They both stood there, stuttering and embarrassed for a little while longer, until they started laughing. At first it was just an embarrassed laugh, then they started laughing at each other. Finally, they were lying on the ground laughing uncontrollably.

Once the last laugh had died down, Tlen suggested that they both get some rest before tomorrow. So they sat huddled together in their small cave and fell asleep.

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