Sleep had pulled Alika into its embrace after all, and though her thoughts had been half-dream, Alika’s decision wouldn’t change.

Alika woke before dawn, shivering. She was cold after a the night on the ice. The frigid wind embraced her body. She’d had no protection from it but her wings, no heat from her pack.

She pulled her wing in tight. She wanted to go back to sleep, but the chill wouldn’t let her.

That was alright. It was best that they got going as early as possible, if Tarka agreed to her plan. Alika wasn’t sure she wanted to say goodbye to her grandmother.

Alika shook her wing, trying to nudge her brother awake.

Her wing touched snow and empty air.

Tarka wasn’t there.

Alika eyes opened wide, scanning the ice for her brother. He was nowhere to be seen. The ice hadn’t cracked in the middle of the night, carrying him off. Perhaps he’d gotten up for an early morning walk, and was about to return?

Alika’s neck felt strangely light.

The Wayfinder was missing.

Alika padded around where they’d been sleeping, looking for it. There was no sign — it had been cleanly removed from her neck, and Alika was almost certain who had done it.

Tarka’s pawprints led away from where they’d slept, back to the shore and onward to the mountains.

“Oh, Tarka,” Alika huffed. “Why couldn’t you have just waited a little longer? Why didn’t you wake me up?”

Of course, Alika could hardly blame him. Why hadn’t she just woken up to tell him they were leaving, right then and there?

Alika padded after his pawprints, a morning snow falling down upon her as she ran.

Kurka’s pack was still asleep in their den, Kurka’s blue fur forming a barricade against the snow.

Alika didn’t hesitate to walk past them. They weren’t her pack.

Though Kurka had tried to make Tarka stay, Alika had a feeling that she wouldn’t come after them. Why would she want two ‘rebellious’ grandchildren refusing to heed to her authority?

As the sky turned to a permeating blue, Alika followed Tarka’s pawprints. By the time she'd gotten to Coldfire Pass, the sun had lifted over the mountains, but Tarka was still nowhere to be seen. The mists of the pass blocked her path, and in the distance, a mountain spewed water and ice into the sky.

Tarka’s tracks led in, each of steps indented firmly into the snow, with purpose. She could guess at what he’d been trying to do — find Snow and Gust, then lure Alika out from Kurka’s pack, reuniting the four together.

Alika walked into the mists, keeping her snout against the ground, using both pawprints in snow and Tarka’s lingering scent to track him. Further and further he’d crept into the pass, until suddenly… the tracks were gone.

“Tarka?” Alika called out. The prints and his scent had been cut suddenly, one moment there, and the next moment not. She looked around, hoping he was hiding beneath one of the ledges, waiting to jump out at her. If he was, she couldn’t see him: the mists were too dense for her to see much at all.

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Alika panicked. Whatever had happened to Tarka, it couldn’t have been good. Had he been crushed under an avalanche? Fallen into a sinkhole? Carried off by Tshishi? Alika dug through the snow for any sign, but couldn’t find it.

“You can come out now, Tarka!” Alika shouted. “Please! I’m sorry! We don’t need to go back to Kurka’s pack!”

There was no response but for the echo between the mountains.

Alika took a deep breath. She had to remain calm, think. Her claws raked through crunchy snow.

Of course — she still had one option that would never fail her. She raised a forepaw, concentrating and allowing green streaks of light to leave her claws. She didn’t know where it would lead her, but she was sure that whatever her path was, Tarka had to be on it.

The lights led her deeper into the canyon. She followed.

It was eerily silent, the shadows cast by the trees looking like fanged monsters. Hackles raised, Alika walked onwards.

Finally, the lights turned toward the walls of the pass. She arrived at a small den beneath a ledge, where Snow and a shivering Gust lay, curled up together.

“Hey,” Alika sighed, placing down her paw.

“Oh. It’s you.” Snow looked up, as if she hadn’t noticed Alika there. She shook off a white dusting from her snout. “So, are you here to kill us?”

“Snow!” Gust slapped his tail into the ground. “Of course she isn’t.”

“Well, she’s part of the pack now,” Snow muttered. “They’re to kill us on sight, aren’t they?”

Alika took in a deep breath. She knew they deserved an apology, but Snow just couldn’t make this easy, could she?

“I wanted to tell you that I’m sorry,” Alika said. “You were right.”

“Right? Me, an ageless source of wisdom, right?” Snow repeated, swishing her tails. “And right about what, exactly?”

“You, Gust, and Tarka are my family,” Alika continued. “Not Kurka’s pack. I’m sorry for not seeing that sooner.”

“Snow and I really did want things to work out with them,” Gust said. “We weren’t hoping things would turn out this way.”

“Let her finish,” Snow snapped.

“I also wanted to apologize for not standing up for the two of you,” Alika said. “I shouldn’t have let Kurka treat you that way. I guess I spent so long looking for my pack that I’d been ignoring what I’d had right in front of me. Will you forgive me?”

“Of course I will,” Gust replied, giving Alika a nuzzle on her forehead.

Alika nuzzled him back, turning to Snow. Snow had been willing to give up her immortal life to save Alika from Tshav, but when Kurka had ordered Alika to choose between Snow and the pack, Alika had said nothing.

“Hmph!” Snow snapped. “You think I’ll forgive you that easy? You owe me.”

Gust batted Snow in the snout with his tail tuft.

“She’s just putting on a show,” Gust explained. “She’s the one who convinced me to wait her and figure out a plan to, er, rescue you and Tarka.”

“Wait, you weren’t leaving?” Alika opened her eyes wide. “You were going to rescue us?”

“Of course we were!” Snow yapped. “We couldn’t just leave Tarka with a monster like Kurka!”

“Tarka?” Gust coughed. “I remember you specifically being worried about Alika.”

“Shut up,” Snow hissed. “I’m trying to milk this!”

Gust batted her again.

“Alika, of course I forgive you.” Snow rolled her eyes. “You’re an absolute idiot and I’m furious you even entertained leaving us behind, but I forgive you. Just don’t do anything like this again.”

“I won’t, I promise. You all are my family and my pack, now and forever.” Alika glanced around the ledge. “So, now that we’ve got that out of the way, where is Tarka hiding?”

“Wait, I thought Tarka was with you?” Gust replied.

The three were all silent for a moment as the realization dawned on them.

“Tarka!” Alika yelled.

Gust shook the snow off him, joining in with Snow, all shouting together. “Tarka!”

All that they heard in response was a piercing screech in the distance, like talons raking through ice. The three turned their heads. To the west, the dark splotch of Tshishi was flying into the mountains.

Alika extended her claws. Green arcs of light pointed along the slopes, up toward the mountain where Tshishi made her lair. Plumes of water and ice burst out of its cragged peak, falling all around them.

“Up there,” Alika whispered. “Tarka’s up there.”