"What?"

"Do any of your neighbours have a motorcycle? Possibly an ATV? Snowmobile?"

Shannon could not help but give off a look that made it seem as though Nat had grown a second head. "Why is that relevant to right now? Noting works. There is no point because they are just useless hunks of metal!"

"And why do you think that I am wanting to know? To try and ride one out of here?" Natalie questioned. "I could not care less about those, as you put them, useless hunks of metal. However, their riding gear would be extremely useful for when we ride these giant wargs!" At her words, Shannon's eyes finally went wide in understanding. Sure enough, riding those wargs would both be comfy and fast, but that was also part of the problem. Riding them would cause wind to whip against their faces and bodies, potentially causing damage and irritation. Finally understanding Nat's reasoning, Shannon racked her brain, but could not remember if any did. That was what was so similar enough between the two of them which had brought them together as friends all of those years ago. Neither of them were social creatures, and usually preferred to be on their own. Weirdly enough, their personalities were similar enough that it just made them feel closer, as if neither could get enough of the others companionship. While it was great for their friendship, it had the effect of giving both of them tunnel vision when it came to building any sort of relationship with other people. Hence why Nat knew no one in that small town, nor did Shannon even know the names of any of her neighbours.

When Shannon shook her head, she almost squealed in alarm at Nat's next action. She just walked straight up to the house of one of her neighbours and opened the front door. Running after her, Shannon was about to lay into Nat for intruding on someone else's home until she saw what she was up to. Items in the house were being grabbed and brought into her by a bunch of small wolfs, probably pups of some of the other ones she had seen. As they were brought into her, they were brought right back out again and put back in place as nicely as possible. Struck dumb by the flurry of activity that was happening in front of her, Shannon's next words just fell out of her mouth. "What is going on? Where did they come from? Where are they going?"

Realization hit Nat like a freight train. She had not explained anything about the whole situation to Shannon. Not the Soulscape, not the canines, and not how she ended up here. Starting on that fateful day that felt like so long ago, she started going through everything that had happened to her. From the stupidity of Angie on her last day at work before the event, to how she found Kali and her pups that very same day. The monsters she had aced, the people she had seen, and the discoveries that she made with the space inside of her. Not one bit of info was left out, sharing everything about the dreams and the whole situation with Troy. Shannon just listened quietly as Nat told the tale of her life for the past ten days, following her and the pack around as they went house to house. Only one house was locked, but on the fourth one they got access to, they finally hit the jackpot. The person there had a matching set of motorcycles, with helmets and full body gear to go with them. Quickly looting, duplicating, and return of the gear, the pack headed out and back towards Shannon's house. As they got up to the door, Nat finally finished the telling of her tale to Shannon, who now looked incredibly thoughtful.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

"I see. That is a lot to unpack right there, and I don't even know how to feel about it. I will need some time."

"Take all the time you need. Though it is getting late, do we want to just stay here for the night before moving on?" Just getting a nod from her friend, Natalie turned around and locked the front door.

"I think that I am just going to take some time to think, and reflect over everything. I'll be upstairs if you need me."

"Likewise, if you need me, I am going to be down here at the couch. Take your time, I will let you know when dinner is ready." A faint smile spread onto Shannon's face, before she slowly lumbered up the stairs, Seeka and Scout following her up. No efforts were made to turn away either of them, and Nat was fine with them heading up. Right now, Shannon needed support more than anything. While she could not personally help, she was glad that two of her pack members were stepping up to help.

The rest of the day went by quickly. While the three of them had stayed upstairs all of the way till dinnertime, the living room became quite lively. The pups ran around, playing amongst themselves. And for once they were not any part of Nat's problems. Kali and Maia had found a large hair brush inside the Soulscape and decided to ask what is was for. The next few hours were filled with Natalie just brushing the hair of all the canines one by one. Seeka had even thought to her that she would take her brushing later, as she was currently indisposed. Dinner turned out to be just a variety platter of all the different foods that had been prepared along the way, as her arms felt way too heavy after hours of brushing thick fur. The pile of loose fur alone could probably make another two wargs easily, and she still had not gotten to Seeka yet. Shannon came down for food, but was reserved the entire time, focusing just on her plate while sparing occasional glances towards Nat. Once done, she claimed to be going to bed, and told Nat to make herself at home in the living room. Taking her up, Kali and Maia quickly got the room set up back into the same set up they had in the hardware store. Sleep quickly claimed most of the group, save the two coyotes who proudly took over the night watch. Nat was one of the last ones to fall asleep, relief and worry plaguing her at the exact same time.