Greykin Valley

| 86 | Plan A, Plan B

⥐ ⋞ ☽ ⋟ ⥐

| Jackson |

As Jackson fixed his gaze upon the foreboding entrance to Greykin Valley, a shiver crawled down his spine, and his heart pounded in his chest like a drum of forewarning. The mountains loomed menacingly, their sheer presence casting elongated, inky shadows that sprawled across the tundra. Not a single tree broke the desolation, and the absence of cadejo or any living creature intensified the eerie silence that enveloped the valley. The bitter wind howled through the barren landscape, whipping up flurries of snow that danced in a macabre ballet, and an icy, malevolent presence clung to the air, saturating it with a sense of impending doom.

"The lab's location is within a twenty-five-mile radius," Sebastien reminded the pack, looking back at them as he and Raphael led the way. "The căutător will fly ahead and look for structures while we work on getting deeper into the valley."

Jackson glanced at Wilson. He expected his friend to bring up the fact that he thought entering through the thin, narrow path was still the better choice, but he didn't say a word.

"Stay close and aware," Damon called.

"As we said, the cadejo hordes are only going to get worse from this point forward," Raphael added. "We only fight if necessary. Understood?"

They all nodded.

Jackson attempted to remain calm, but the closer they got to the gaping space between the two mountains, the more anxious he felt. He wasn't sure what might be waiting on the other side, but after getting chased by a horde not long ago, he felt nervous and on edge, and Raphael telling everyone that it was only going to get worse didn't help.

Worse how? Would the hordes be bigger? Were there new variants that Damon's pack hadn't come across yet? Or what if the antlered wolf was waiting in there for him? What if the lab was under guard? What if there were soldiers and tanks and helicopters? Or what if the Holy Grail was out there?

"Are you okay?" Damon asked quietly.

Jackson glanced at him to make sure that he was asking him and not Remus, who was clinging close to the Alpha after almost falling into that abyss. When he saw that his mate was asking him, he nodded and stared ahead again. "Just nervous."

"Tell me about it," came Amos' voice.

"We're not going through until the căutător comes back with a survey of the land; stop panicking," Elias muttered.

"We'll rest here for a few minutes," Raphael said as he slowed and came to a halt. He then looked up at the single căutător creature and called, "Go. Tell me what's waiting on the other side."

The creature responded with a screech and raced towards the mountains, disappearing into the fog that ensnared their tips.

Jackson sat beside Damon and took a deep, quiet breath.

Before he could sink into his anxious thoughts, though, Julian sat beside him and muttered, "I'm getting super freaked out, man. Like not even kidding. I kinda thought we'd never get here, you know? But now that we are, it's like...freaky."

He nodded in agreement. "I'm just trying to focus on the fact that we're so close to getting what we came out here for."

Julian sighed and made themselves comfortable. "I'm trying to focus on what I want as my reward."

"Any ideas?"

"I don't know. Like...I know there's things I want, but now that I can have any one thing, my brain is like...empty."