ATASHA’S POV
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<b>Cassian </b>had warned me that the journey would take at least a full day. The statement caught me off guard. How could traveling to a northern outpost take so long? Were we already that deep into the northernnds without my realizing it?
I didn’t ask him any of these questions. If he thought I needed an exnation, he would give one. Instead, I simply followed him, my steps a little uncertain at first. We had no carriage, no supplies beyond the clothes on our backs and a few weapons.
It didn’t take long for me to understand what he meant. Moving through the endless snow, each step sinking into the drifts, made progress painfully slow. The cold air bit at my skin, and even with constant movement, the chill settled into my bones. Thend itself seemed determined to test every ounce of strength I had.
I lowered my head and forced myself forward, eyes fixed on the ground. The snow crunched beneath my boots. I didn’t even realize he had stopped until I walked straight into his back.
I jerked my head up, startled. “What’s wrong?”
Cassian didn’t answer right away. His gaze swept the trees, sharp and restless. Then he muttered, “You are too slow.”
I blinked at him. “Too slow?” I barely had time to process the word before he moved.
He spun around so fast the air shifted with him, and I stumbled back a step. My shoes slipped against the packed snow, bnce tipping. Before I could fall, his arm shot out, hauling me in until I hit his chest. The impact knocked the breath from me. He was holding me, one arm wrapped around me as if he had no intention of letting go.
I froze, wide–eyed. His face was closer than it had ever been. Those eyes, deep crimson, unnervingly bright against the white of the snow, held me in ce. And I realized then that his eyes pulled me in, holding me longer than I should have let them. There was something in them that unsettled me, a mix of danger and certainty that made it hard to look away.
My throat tightened. I cleared it, forcing my voice out. “Let go.”
His gaze flicked lower,nding on my mouth. His grip didn’t loosen. “If I do,” he said evenly. “You’ll fall.”
The words sank in. He wasn’t wrong. I had no footing, no bnce. If he released me now, I would hit the ground. I swallowed hard and gave a short nod. “Fine. I get it.”
Only then did he straighten me, pulling me back onto steady feet. My legs still felt unsteady, like they hadn’t caught up with the rest of me.
“Thank you,” I managed, trying to soundposed.
But he wasn’t done. His arms shifted, and before I could guess his intention, he lifted me clean off the ground.
I gasped, my hands flying to his shoulders. My entire body stiffened as I looked down, realizing my boots
<b>12:02 </b><b>Mon</b><b>, </b><b>Sep </b>
were no longer touching snow. “Cassian-”
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He didn’t <b>react </b>to my protest. His arms were solid beneath me, holding me as if I weighed nothing. The set of his <b>jaw </b><b>was </b>calm, unbothered, but his eyes hadn’t softened. They stayed locked on me, unreadable and definitely too steady forfort.
My chest tightened. Being this close was too much. The warmth of his body bled through theyers of clothing, the strength in his grip making it clear I had no chance of slipping free even if I wanted to.
“Put me down,” I said quickly.
He tilted his head slightly, studying me. “You’ll only fall again.”
The answer made my pulse jump. He wasn’t mocking me. He wasn’t even smiling. He was just stating it like fact, as if carrying me was the only logical option.
I pressed my lips together, realizing anything else I said would sound weak. My breath came faster than it should have, and I hated that he noticed.
His hold didn’t falter. If anything, he pulled me closer, as though testing how much space I would demand, or how much I would tolerate. Yet, I said nothing.
To my surprise, I feltfortable in his arms. It was unsettling how natural it seemed, as if my body had already decided it trusted the hold. Against my will, I drew in a breath. He smelled of blood, steel, and something I couldn’t name, an undercurrent that was sharp but strangely grounding. There was something enigmatic about it that made my thoughts drift.
I scolded myself silently. What was I doing, thinking about how he smelled? We were trudging through enemynds, surrounded by threats, and I was distracted by something so useless. I forced my mind to focus, but before I could, a sudden sound snapped me back.
The air carried the ring of shing swords. Growls followed, the unmistakable sound of beasts locked in a fight. Cassian’s arms tensed, and before I could say anything, he bent his knees and leapt.
The ground blurred away in an instant. My stomach lurched as wended on a tree branch high above. The wood shook under the impact but held. I shut my eyes tight, pulse hammering.
When he set me down, my boots found the branch, narrow and uneven. The wind felt sharper here, colder, and the ground seemed impossibly far below. My knees weakened, and without realizing it, I clutched his arm, holding on as if it were the only stable thing keeping me from falling. It was more of a hug than a grip, and I hated that I noticed it.
“Look,” Cassian said.
I forced my eyes open.
Not far ahead, through breaks in the trees, I saw them, figures moving in formation. They were lean, tall, their limbs longer than normal men. Their movements were too fluid, too strange, as if their bones bent differently. They fought beasts I couldn’t name, striking with weapons that gleamed faintly even during the day.
It wasn’t just a skirmish, it looked like a group traveling while hacking through anything that blocked their
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path. Sadly, they were clearly not winning.
I blinked hard, unable to make sense of it. My mouth opened, questions rushing up, but Cassian cut them off before I spoke.
“Stay here.”
His hand pressed lightly against my shoulder, moving me to his other side, away from the edge. I barely had time to react before he pushed off the branch and dropped straight down into the snow below.
I froze, stunned, staring at the space he left behind. My fingers clenched against the bark. The world tilted slightly, my bnce screaming at me not to move.
I cursed him under my breath. Of all the things he could have done, he left me perched in a tree like a fool while he went to face whatever those creatures were.