~Serana⚜️

*grraAAHhh* Jumping awake I look around frantically for something trying to eat me. When I don't see anything I relax and rub at my eyes to clear the sleep.

"What in the skies was that?" Mira groans sitting up beside me. A hiss escapes her lips when she jostles her injured wing.

Putting a hand on her shoulder I push her forward so I can look at her from the back. The previously dislocated wing was swollen and the skin around the base was turning black with deep set bruises. "You need to get to a doctor, soon." I mutter, softly stroking the abused flesh and almost impossibly tiny feathers.

She hums in agreement but says nothing.

Breathing out a sigh I drop my hand to roll forward onto my feet and stand up. "Come on love, we have to get moving before that thing decides to come make breakfast out of us." I joke half heartedly reaching down to help pull her to her feet.

Once she was standing I do a quick survey to make sure we had everything. Quiver, bow, I look over at the softly glowing embers beside me and kick some dirt over them, fire's put out, grumpy monarch's up, aaand swords. I think that's it. Satisfied that nothing was missing I turn to the opening in the wall. "Alright, lets get movin'."

"I know I shouldn't ask but... do you have any idea where you're going?" Mira pipes up.

Pausing I frown and send her a glare over my wing. "Fine, then you lead." I grumble stepping to the side to let her pass.

She huffs in amusement but doesn't comment further as she passes me. "I hope you like snow." She throws over her wing before slipping out of the hole head first.

Frowning at where she had been standing I roll my eyes and move to follow her out. Ducking my head to stick it through the hole in the rock I get my first glimpse of the outside world since last night. Holy shit! My eyes felt libel to pop out of my head as I swept my gaze across the white landscape.

"Serana." Mira's voice calls up in a low voice, breaking me from my trance.

Looking down at the other woman I'm startled to notice how incredibly hard she is to see against the snow. Even with her only being a few feet away she blended in with the white of the snow and black of the trees and dark rock.

Slipping through the hole I drop head first preparing to catch myself with my hands once I sink into the snow. I wasn't, however, prepared for how deep the actual snow was, and apparently I had forgotten that we had scrambled up a small incline to get to the hole. Whatever noise I was about to make got swallowed by the snow as my head buried in the cold white blanket and then popped back out as I rolled down the small hill.

Landing with a huge puff of snow around me I shake my head vigorously and stumble too my feet. Blushing until I was as red as my wing, I look over at Mira only to see her covering her mouth with one hand in a desperate attempt to hold back her laughter.

"Shut up." I mutter, averting my gaze to the trees.

"Not used to this much snow I take it?" She teases as her feet crunch in the thick white drifts. "Come on, it'll be warmer in the trees." She adds.

Shivering from the cold brush of wind as it swept off the small cliff, I quickly start following before I loose sight of the woman. "You're gonna have to stay close to me, you're too damn hard to see in all this white and black." I grumble, crossing my arms and folding my wings over my sides in an effort to preserve my body heat.

A chuckle is my only response as the queen slows her pace and starts curving around the trees and snow drifts, taking the path that generally only had about five to eight inches instead of twelve to fifteen. I scowled at her back as I noticed how unaffected she was by the cold.

"Careful dear, wouldn't want that face to become permanent." Mira calls back teasingly.

"You're insufferable." I grumble as I fight to keep pace with the taller woman.

"And yet here you are." She says, stopping for a moment to let me catch up. "Are you really that cold?" She questions, a concerned frown marring her features.

I nod my head in affirmation and stop as I finally catch up to her.

A frown pulls the corners of her mouth down as she reaches out to put a hand to my forehead. "Well you don't seem to be running a fever. You're freezing actually. Have you always been this sensitive to cold?" She ask, moving her hands to my cheeks, still checking my temperature.

I shrugged and leaned into her warm touch. "I'm always cold in the morning, I'll get used to it as the day wears on." I assure her.

The frown doesn't lessen but she nods in acceptance and drops her hands from my face to continue on our path. I bite back a sigh of complaint and trudge along behind her.

As we're making our way through the forest of needled trees a thought hits me. "How are we gonna get back up to the Algrien shelf?" I ask fighting to keep pace with Mira's longer legs.

"Actually we have to find a way onto the Qrinto shelf before we can get to Algrie." She corrects me. "We are currently on the third shelf, but luckily for us the Qrinto shelf was secured via metal cables not long after Algrie's original building. The same as Algrie is tethered to Qrinto in the same fashion." She explains the layout of the land giving me an idea of what she planned to do.

"Wait, why do you need cables to secure the shelves? Shouldn't the vines and rocks do that on their own?" I question, finally breaking even with her strides.

"If they had been formed like most of Skyris then yes they would, and seeing as how plant life doesn't grow on Algrie's base do to the trygmerzite that is pretty difficult to accomplish in the first place. The shelf we're currently on is named Ascension. That is because in Skyris' original layout it was the highest shelf and formed the peak of the kingdom. During our tampering with trygmerzite and the resulting cataclysmic aftershock when the Shattered Mountains were formed Ascension cracked and broke into three shelves. Algrie, as you can guess, was one of those selves, we couldn't lose the city so thanks to some extraordinary ingenuity and blind luck we managed to secure the newly formed Qrinto shelf to what remained of Ascension and then secured Algrie to Qrinto. That's why this region is called Broken Peak." She finishes.

I was a bit gobsmacked at the new information. I had always been told that the forming of the Shattered Mountains had been so astoundingly devastating that it had rocked the whole kingdom, but to have been so strong as to break apart a shelf of that size... was awe inspiring. The Shattered Mountains were located right under Broken Peak, but even still it would have taken an incredible amount of power to travel all the way from where it originated to here, and twice that to provide enough force to break the shelf.

"So we're just gonna climb giant metal cables up to the Qrinto shelf?" I ask incredulously.

I could feel Mira roll her eyes at me. "No, we're going to ask for a lift from one of the towns that has formed around one. The tethers are in constant need of supervising and maintenance to ensure that they do not break. As a result small towns have formed around them, most of the residents work to maintain the cables as their lively hoods and in return for their service they are payed by my court." She explains, not once bothering to look in my direction as she leads us on.

"If we're asking for a ride, then why can't they take us all the way up to Algrie?" I question, cursing under my breath as I stumble over a tree root buried in the snow.

"Too dangerous, for both us and them." Mira answers, turning toward me to make sure I was alright. "Traveling in a group like that over Qrinto is just asking for a fight with the rebels that are hiding-out there. I mean absolutely no offense, but you couldn't take them on your own in an honest to Skies fight, and I won't be much help with this limp wing." She turns back and continues to trek through the snow and thick trees.

I fall silent as I trudge along behind her when a thought hits me. "Hey, if these cables are the only thing holding Algrie down then why are the rebels even bothering with a bomb? Why not just cut the cables and be done with it?" I question. That made more sense than trying to steal the lavalieres right off our necks.

"I'm not sure, but it would be hard for them to do in the first place. Those cables are very heavily guarded by an independent force of guard. They're highly qualified and their sole purpose is to protect those tethers. That on top of the fact that it would take a great deal of effort and time to sever just one out of well over a dozen cables that connect Algrie to Qrinto might have something to do with it." She answers. I could hear her smirk with pride at the precautions her ancestor made to ensure the sheer difficulty forced onto anyone who truly wished to get rid of Algrie.

"I know I've never met any of your relatives, namely because you don't have any, but even so, I'm really starting to see a family resemblance." I grumble in a teasing manner.

Mira chuckles in response and throws me a playful glare over her wing. "This coming from the woman who's practically an exact copy of her nani." She throws back.

"Ha-ha-ha, you're so funny. You should try opening with that line at the next delegation meeting." I retort.

And I swear the woman snickered at me. The high and might queen snickered, at me. I know she's done it before, but never so obviously and there was usually someone or something around.

Drawing my lip back in a snarl I bunch the muscles up in my legs and aim for the uninjured side of her body and pounce. With a loud yelp we were both sent tumbling into the snow. Before we could even land properly I was on my back with a snarling woman baring her teeth at me.

"You are so lucky I didn't land on my wing." She growls lowly.

Swallowing the saliva pooling in my mouth I look up to meet blazing dark blue eyes. Oh she is definitely pissed. "I know I should probably be scared for my life right now." I admit, twitching under her taloned hands on my shoulders. "But you have no idea how breathtaking you look right now. Especially with all the snow covered trees above you." I breath staring up at her with wide eyed awe.

The way her black hair fell around her face like a halo stood in direct contrast with her marble white skin and the snow covered branches of evergreen trees above her. I could see her trying to stay angry at me but the snarl was already dropping off her face and trying to pull into a smile.

Gently grabbing her hands I pull them off my shoulders and intertwine our fingers together. Her battle against smiling was quickly turning in my favor as I leaned up and pecked her on the nose. A girly giggle slipped past her now grinning lips, eliciting a grin of my own in response.

"You know one day you're not going to be able to weasel your way out of trouble." She growls playfully. Before I can come up with a smartass comeback she has her mouth pressed against mine, stealing the air from my lungs.

I couldn't stop smiling long enough to properly kiss her back. Nothing else in the world seemed to matter, not the cold, nor the hunger, or even the fact that we were quite literally stranded in the middle of a hostile environment. The only thing I could focus on at the moment was the woman sitting in my lap, pulling me up into a more comfortable position.

Breaking the kiss I pivot my wings around into a more comfortable position and drop my hands from Mira's to run my fingers over smooth milky white thighs. I could feel the small feathery down along her skin, nigh impossible to see even if I tried. That was one thing I loved about growing in a winter coat, during every other season our skin was bare and completely devoid of feathers except for our wings, but come winter we gained a thin coat of translucent feathers to help keep in heat. I loved the small invisible coat because it felt softer than any fur pelt I've ever felt and it never ceased to send shivers up my spine when mine were rubbed the wrong way by soft hands.

Mira apparently had the same liking I did as she trembled under my palms. "Serana, need I remind you we're in the middle of the forest? You need to stop." Her voice was a little husky and she seemed to be using my shoulders for support.

"Stop what?" I ask innocently trailing my fingers up over her abdomen. The muscles twitched beneath my wondering hands, and I think she stopped breathing entirely when I traced the hem of her shorts with only the barest hint of a touch.

With a low growl she meets my gaze. "Serana if you don't stop, I'm not responsible for what happens next." She warns, her tone letting on just how serious she was.

Quirking a brow at her I lean in to let my breath ghost over her lips. "What's the matter?" I tease, seeing just how far I could push her.

Her eyes flashed and I could feel her talons lightly running across my shoulders, just barely keeping from puncturing my skin. "Serana I'm serious, it has been a very long time and I've been trying very hard for the past couple months. You have no idea how difficult it was to let you go yesterday and not abuse the offer you gave me, but if you don't stop right now I'm not going to either." Her words were meant as a warning but all they did was make my blood run hot.

Letting my talons extend I grab ahold of her hips and pull her tighter against me. "Who ever said I wanted you to stop? I sure didn't, especially not yesterday." My voice was hoarse and gravelly but I didn't care.

The dangerous flash of her eyes was my only warning to spread my wings before I was shoved back into the cold snow. The shock of cold on my back made me arch up and gasp for air at the same time a warm mouth seared the flesh of my neck. I hissed in both pain and pleasure as her teeth bit into my flesh and pulled lightly. The bites quickly faded into open mouthed kisses that were definitely going to leave more than a few marks on my skin.

As her sharp fangs nipped my ear I couldn't have cared less what she did to me so long as she didn't stop. She trailed more kisses along my jaw until she reached my mouth and nipped my bottom lip. Smiling lightly at her antics I reached up and buried my hand in her hair to pull her in for a proper kiss.

Out of nowhere Mira stiffens and pulled back far enough to lift her head. When her gaze settles off to the right somewhere I follow it to see something large with a grayish black pelt. It wasn't as big as a vyx but it was definitely bigger than a gryph. The thing had a short snout with a rough triangular nose, large, long, black spots covered its torso giving it a distinctly cloudy looking pelt, and huge paws silently crunched through the snow. The thing was obviously a predator with its build but it's paws were oddly clawless like Ovah's on his hind legs, I noted curiously.

Thank the skies Mira was on top of me, otherwise that thing would have easily spotted my bright red wings. We watched it pass until it was far out of sight and Mira stood up, pulling me with her.

With a huff I turn my eyes on the other woman. "We just can't catch a break can we?" I half sigh in exasperation.

Mira smiles in sympathy and gives me one last kiss before tugging me in the right direction. "Come on, we need to get to the town before it circles back." She encourages softly.

Nodding my head in resignation I follow her in the direction of the town. How she knew where we were was beyond me but I trusted her to get us back to the safety of Algrie.

For the rest of the day we walked, only stoping now and again to rest our tiered legs. As the sky began to darken we finally broke from the cover of the trees to the sight of a small town a fair amount bigger than my home village.

Kids were running the streets back to their parents and guards in silver armor with black cloth roamed the perimeter. As I looked around my eyes found an awe inspiring sight. At the far end of the town was a single giant cord made of thousands of smaller ones twisting together. The whole thing was easily wider than my wingspan in diameter and stretched up far into the sky to sink into the underbelly of the shelf above us with what looked to be a guards post built into the rock-face beside it. "Wow." Was the only thing I could think to say as I looked up at the behemoth being circled by two guards in a constant opposing up and down pattern.

Mira chuckles at my reaction and pulls me by the hand toward the town. "Guard." She calls out to a silver clad woman several yards away.

The woman turns to us waits there until we stop in front of her. "What do you need?" The guard ask sounding bored out of her mind.

Mira lifts a brow at the woman. "Well you certainly don't sound particularly alert." She observes, earning a peeved glare from the guard.

The woman opens her mouth looking ready to snap at Mira for making that comment but when she actually looks at us and takes in our appearance her mouth snaps shut so quickly I'm afraid she might have hurt herself. "Y-your majesty. What are you doing here?" The woman questions before quickly throwing her body into a rigged salute.

"At ease." Mira waver her hand, dismissing the salute. "We had a bit of an incident. Could you point us to the local doctor? I'm afraid I've dislocated my wing and need a sling." She ask trying to get the guard to question us as little as possible.

"Yes ma'am, I mean, your majesty." The woman trips over her words. "Follow me." She turns about-face and literally marches down the street.

Both Mira and I look at each other for a split second before following her through the town until we came to a wooden door with a sign that read 'Doctor' hanging out above it. The woman steps up and knocks firmly on the door.

A crash is heard from inside followed by a woman yelling, something about watching where you're going, before the door swings open to reveal a scowling woman with dark gray wings shot through with whitish purple streaks. "What is it?!" The woman snarls at the guard.

The guard twitches but seems to keep her calm despite the other woman's aggression. "Her majesty request medical aid." The guard answers before stepping to the side to reveal us standing on the side of the dirt street.

One of the doctor's brows raises in curiosity and she steps aside, ushering us in. "Not you." She hisses at the guard when she makes a move to follow.

The silver clad woman looks ready to argue when Mira waves her hand in silent dismissal. "Thank you for your help." She nods before disappearing into the wooden building.

I follow close behind and look around at the little establishment. There was a table to the side with a wiry looking boy still not yet through growing picking up bottles and tools that were scattered on the ground. On the far wall was a brick fireplace with a roaring fire, two stools sat in front of it and another was set next to the table, and a ladder was nailed to the wall opposite the table leading up to a loft where a bed and dresser sat cramped on the wooden outcrop.

"Right this way your majesty." The woman ushers us over to the table. The boy quickly scrambled to gather the rest of the dropped supplies and began putting them away on the shelves behind the table. "Please have a seat." The doctor pats the table for Mira to sit.