Aether Wars {Part One}
My ears perked and turned toward the sound of a cough that came from somewhere near the back of the cave. I sighed as my head mimicked the movement of my ears and turned to look into the darkness where the sound had come from, my head then turning to look back toward the entrance where a cold winter breeze was blowing snow through the mouth of the cave.
It was evident that no one else was coming, I had seen the destruction the dragons had caused and it was apparent that we had taken losses. I closed my eyes to think on it a few moments. Of the thirty pack members only eighteen of us had managed to get away from the fighting and regroup.
The elder had gathered the remaining betas and omegas into three groups of four, after we had organized and found shelter, before sending us out to find any food and survivors. While we were gone the elder kept the remaining six members who were too young, injured, old or unable to fight in the back of the cave.
When my group finally came back with a fresh kill I was shocked to learn that only Roll, Ruby, Stash and I had come back. I thought on it a second before shaking the thought from my head so I could think about those of us still remaining.
That left Zaphera, the only elder to catch up with our group after the attacks. Zey who is Zaphera's daughter and our last alpha female who hadn't been on her first hunt. Lera and Kera who are both adult betas and the packs only surviving female twins to catch up with the group. Haro, who is one of the packs remaining male betas. Erin, one of the remaining omega pups who had stayed close to me during the run from the attacks. Stash and Ruby who are sisters on top of being omegas. Roll, a male omega who became my friend despite what happened during my first hunt. Then there is me, another omega.
With so few omegas left the elder decided to put rank aside for now and spread out the work to give those injured, too weak, or too young time to heal and relax. I shook my head to try and clear those thoughts from my mind, my eyes opening so I could stay focused on guarding the cave entrance.
The sky was darkening and the storm was beginning to get worse by the time Stash came to take over for her guard shift. I nodded a silent reply to her as I got up and walked slowly to the back of the cave, stopping to take my fill of meat from the carcass my group brought back, before I flopped down near Erin.
It didn't take long for sleep to catch up with me and with everything that had happened today I was glad to let it take my mind. Soon after going to sleep a small grimace crossed my face that showed the unrest that was entering my mind.
My dreams had begun to change into something close to a flashback that I couldn't wake myself up from, a shiver traveling through my body before I let out a small whimper.