Episode Seven, Part 3: 

ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴏɢ ᴅᴀʏꜱ ᴀʀᴇ ᴏᴠᴇʀ 

Why do you keep reaching for my hand? Do you see 
something I can't? Why do you try to save me? 
This fate is well deserved. 

-

"Put this on." 

Bas shot up from where he was laying, the sudden, breathless voice of Lyra breaking through the tent as he caught what she chucked towards him. Unfolding it, it revealed to be a guards uniform of one of the Nightraiders. 

"Where did you get this?" Bas queried, voice full of concern. There was no way she would have been allowed to just take one of these. 

Lyra didn't answer, but she stop briefly in her tracks, staring over at her brother. Emotion swept over her face - shades of guilt, regret; secrets pulling at her lips and making them quiver. It told him what she had done. 

Bas was hesitant, but he pulled the coat over his shirt, zipping it up completely. 

"What are we doing?" 

Lyra was hurrying around their tent, grabbing various things and stuffing them deep inside of a bag. It seemed she didn't want to admit what she was doing, that she was helping her brother leave, that she would be the final force that would separate her from the last of her family she had close. 

"I'm getting you out of here." 

"Why are there two bags?" Bas asked. A sudden spark of hope - his voice lifting. "Are you coming with me? To Basilisk?" 

She shivered at the name, but pushed her discomfort aside, shaking her head in reply. "I already told you I am Blood Riders. But..." 

"But what?" 

She sighed, shoving the bag onto the table, looking up at Bas with an exhausted, tired-out expression. "But I don't think they'll let me back when they realize what I've done." 

"Then come to Basilisk." He pleaded, hovering closer to her, standing opposite end of the table. 

"That's not who I am!" 

"But it's who you should be..." His voice was delicate, like it could break with emotion any moment now. "And I want you to come home with me and Harlow. I want to cling onto the last of my family that I have left. I've lost Hayzel. I don't want to lose another sister. Please, Lyra... Please come with me." 

There was a falter in her stance, as if she was being pulled, as if she was on the verge to accepting what he said. 

From outside the tent, a long, consistent ring of a siren broke through the emptiness of the space, stealing away the last of Bas' hope. 

"What's that?" He asked, defeated.  

"It means it's time. The guards at the east fence will go assist at the main gate, thinking that there is an attack outside. I scheduled the alarm to go off. I'm getting you out. It's now or never." 

- 

"Hey," Quill's voice was raspy, half coated in sleep as he called out to Ares and Elara, sleeping behind him in what used to be Wynn and Ares' room. 

They looked over to Quill, own eyes weary, struggling to clarify their sights in the darkness afraid that they would see something that wasn't there. But the relief on Quill's face said it all, inching closer towards Wynnlow's bed where he laid, now stirring himself awake. 

"Wynn?" Elara murmured, hurrying over to his side. There was a disbelief in her chest. 

He groaned at first, coughs then rumbling his body until he peeled his eyes open. Suddenly awake meant suddenly being aware of the pain his body was covered in. The room was filled with fast, sharp breaths, Wynnlow trying to move positions but ultimately causing himself more anguish. 

Quill gripped onto both of his arms, holding him steady to refrain his movements. 

"Wynn, calm down. You're okay." Ares spoke. "Open your eyes." 

He continued to struggle, held down by both brothers now, until his breathing slowed down to a steady pace. Stable at last, Wynnlow was finally able to catch a glimpse at where he was, but it wasn't home. 

"Sol?" He breathed out, confused, his last memory collapsing at her feet. 

"No buddy, it Ares." He told him. "Quill, Elara." He continued. 

Wynn tried to force himself up abruptly, the names of his family briefly distracting him from his pain. Ares pushed him back down, his brother finally comprehending who was in front of him, and what had happened. 

"My leg..." He muttered, unable to reach down and feel the damage. 

"You're okay. Aeryn fixed you up." 

"Aeryn's here?" 

"Yeah. Kodiak, Riverly as well." Ares informed him. 

"Is she okay?" 

"Aeryn's fine-" 

"Sol. Is Sol okay?" 

Ares breathed out, almost taken aback - once again - by his devotion for her. "She's fine. Been waiting for you to wake up. I'll tell her to come in." 

Wynn nodded, exhaling away his fear, resting back down against the mattress. "Thank you." He whispered, smiling as Quill and Ares nodded in his direction, quietly making their way out of the room. Elara stayed back, wanting a minute of own her own with her brother, finally a moment where they were free of any danger. Where nothing could come between them. 

"Thank you for staying alive." Her came out before the door could even shut behind them. 

Wynn chuckled, holding down on his stomach as it caused him to ache. His smile soon dissolved, looking over at his sister and realizing what she had done. "You should stay within Basilisk next time. I don't want you getting hurt out here." He said. 

Elara rolled her eyes lightheartedly, trying not to take his concern too seriously. "You were out there." She pointed out. "It doesn't matter what could happen, as long as we get to each other. You did it for me and Ares... Why can't you accept it for yourself?" 

"I-." Wynn stumbled. He hadn't thought about it like that. 

"Because you're my little sister. Because I don't want you to have to know the world like I do." 

"I'm starting to already. You were gone, Wynn..." Elara murmured. "You can't except to shield me from everything. I need to learn that myself." 

Wynn sighed, uncertain how to find common ground with Elara's defiant need for independence. It had been their parents job - more than anyone - to keep her safe, not that they had to worry about anything when they were in the Bunker, but now that job was down to her brothers. A little older than she was - figuring out the world one day at a time. 

"I don't want you ever to go through what happened out there. None of you. So, I'm sorry, Elara, but I'm gonna do whatever that takes to keep you safe. To keep us safe."  

-

A knock on the door pulled Sol's gaze away from her upper-arm, thumb grazing over the fresh scaring as she looked to the doorway to see who had appeared. 

Ares' eyes were bright with hope, even before he smiled, even before he delivered the news to Sol. 

"Is he...?" She couldn't quite ask. 

"Yeah," Ares chuckled, "he's awake... And he's asking for you." 

Sol exhaled, the relief raising the corners of her lips as her entire body relaxed. She turned to face Kodiak, who didn't need an explanation, already nodding - laughing as he nudged her away. 

"We're finished here, anyway." Kodiak told her, passing over the blade and ink. The initials 'N.R' now stained onto her skin. "I know you've been waiting. Go." 

Sol couldn't even find a moment to thank him before she was halfway across the room, brushing past Ares as determination carried her to Wynnlow's room. 

Before she knew it, she was standing outside the door, eyes closed, exhaling the horrors that lingered from the last time she saw him. As she reached for the handle, it turned, and Elara stepped out from the room - surprised to see her. 

"Oh, hey." Elara mumbled, moving out the way for Sol to pass by. Despite how long she had been on the ground for now, she still didn't know Sol very well - other than the fact that she was in charge of everything at Basilisk... Or, was. 

"You went out there too?" 

"I-" Elara was unsure what she was talking about. 

"You went out into the DeadLands for Wynn?" 

Elara nodded, not knowing where to look. 

Sol breathed out, taken aback by the young girl's courage. "That was really brave." 

A smile crept onto Elara's face, fond of the older girl's encouragement. "Just like Wynn." She whispered under her breath, beaming over her brother. 

Sol exhaled, then - remembering why she was here, peering over Elara's shoulder to the door behind her. 

"Oh," Elara chuckled, moving out the way once again. "He's just in there. I'll leave you to it." 

Sol waited until she passed by, gathering her thoughts, breathing away all the anxiety and the fear that whispered to her everything had changed... And then she opened the door. 

Wynnlow looked over, eyes full of hope, fulfilled only when Sol stepped forward into the room. 

"Hey," he breathed out, sitting up in his bed. His voice was raspy, coated in sleep - his body still adjusting to recovery. 

"Hey you." Sol murmured back. She walked over to his side, moving the chair Elara had been in to sit down, herself. It was then - quite suddenly - that they realized they didn't know what to say to each other. How do you put into words the gratitude you have for someone that saved your life? How do you say, 'the only reason I am here right now is because of you. And I owe you everything"? 

Sol was lost for words, but trying to piece it together nonetheless, until Wynnlow interrupted her. 

"Thanks for coming back for me." 

Sol looked up instantly, lip quivering as she stared him down, trying to process what he had said. 

"Come back for you?" She begged for clarity. "Wynn, I owe my life to you. I'd... I-" She choked. "I'd never leave you behind... Not again." 

Wynnlow looked away, bashfully, the softest of laughs spilling out. "It feels like it wasn't that long ago when you couldn't stand the sight of me." 

"I know. It feels like a lot of things have changed." 

Wynn smiled, perhaps not realizing everything Sol was feeling, unable to acknowledge what he meant to her after everything she had lost. 

"I can't wait to get back to Basilisk." Wynnlow admitted. "It's funny; it wasn't the Bunker that I was thinking about out there, or what everything was like before - it was about going back to Basilisk. Together... Home. That's what kept me going." 

Sol shifted away. Only slightly, but enough for Wynn to notice. 

"You have to stay here." 

"What?" 

"Until it's safe at Basilisk. Until myself, or Dreea, or Kodiak have regained control." 

"No." Wynnlow answered. He push the blankets off from his body, slowly trying to swing his legs off the bed, but Sol restricted him. 

"What happened to 'I'd never leave you behind?'" Wynnlow questioned. 

"I'm not leaving you behind." She was adamant. "But you're still healing, and it's just as unsafe for your family to be seen by my dad, as it is for me." 

"Maybe this is the part where I tell you that I'm not leaving without you, either." 

"Wynn-" 

"I'm serious, Sol." His voice was low. "You keep me alive... I think I kind of keep you alive, too." 

She shook her head, willing herself not to laugh, but she couldn't help it. Her eyes grazed over him fondly. 

"I go where you go." 

Sol gulped, the doubt for his plans balancing against the promise of unity. She found herself nodding, agreeing not to leave without Wynn, praying that it wasn't a foolish mistake. 

"There's something that I've been wanting to do." 

Wynnlow's curiosity peaked out, watching Sol reach behind her to lift something up from the ground. He hadn't paid attention to her setting anything down, so when she pulled out a sharp blade and small container of ink, Wynnlow was unable to figure out what she was doing. 

Sol weighed it her hands, exhaling after a moment as she pushed it towards Wynnlow. 

He accepted it into his hands cautiously, turning it around to get a better sense of it. 

"What's this for?" 

"Wynnlow," Sol began, seeming to have found the words now. She reached forward, taking his hand in her's for a moment, turning his palm around to reveal the back of his hand. 

Wynnlow knew instantly, his eyes falling upon his tattoo as what could only be described as the feeling of his heart softening inside of his chest. 

"I owe you my life." 

"Sol-" 

"If you didn't find me... I mean, it was more than that - if you didn't bring everyone to look for me, I wouldn't be here. I am in debt to you, Wynn." 

Wynnlow looked down at the blade in his hand, understanding what she wanted him to do. Finally, he breathed out and took hold of her hand as the words settled in his chest, squeezing ever so slightly onto her hold. 

Seven // Part 3

Sorry it's been 3 weeks since an update, but I've this chapter in mind since before book 1 was written. I wanted to make sure it was right.

Also, this has been one of the worst weeks in my life.