It was more than a little degrading, really.
Cassian was being hauled along behind his captors by a crude binding of rope, being paraded along like some sort of pretty thief.
Do these people have no class?
He had been rudely awakened by the very fabric of the land once again lurching clockwise. The violent tremors had shaken his very soul, a sensation not much agreeable for a man trying to get some sleep.
Not long after the land settled, the unsightly group of soldiers crawled from their shelters- fresh bruises and all- to tear down the camp. Amazingly they were back on the road within minutes.
Hours into the march, the dull scenery hadn't changed an inch. They were walking through a dense forest so tightly compacted that it felt like a single suffocating wall of timber. If it wasn't for the loosely defined dirt road, the overgrowth may well have swallowed them whole. Even with this, the road was a constant battle against rogue branches smacking them in the face. A faint mercy was offered through thin patches of sunlight breaking through the forest's canopy, guiding their way on through the road ahead.
…What can I do?
Cassian was still hung up on this question. If it weren't for the guidance of the ragtag group that somehow knew their way through the impenetrable environment, he highly doubted there would be any chance of him getting out. There were no notable landmarks to speak of, nothing to catch his eye as a mark of distance. It was just an endless wall of damn trees.
Besides, he needed a real plan- something better than just escaping his restraints and running blindly into the forest. He thought back to the way the Azure Path had flickered as he approached the realm crack; the light had been thin as the energy ran out. It was dying. If he wanted to travel any real distance within the void, then he would have to find a way to provide it with new power.
As for how to actually do that, he was clueless. Information was a luxury he didn't have. His only lead was a name- this "Great Wanderer" the divine being had mentioned. It wasn't much, but it was all he had to go on.
This brought him on to how painfully weak he was. He wasn't able to put up any resistance while being tied to that tree, regardless of how fortunate it was to witness his first "turning" that way. At this current moment, if the orders were given for him to die, there was nothing he could do to prevent it.
Outside of following the legacy of the wanderer, I need strength- immediate strength.
Cassian needed martial strength. He needed to know how to wield a weapon. He neededa body trained to do more than just run. Only then, may he stand a chance of tracking down information on the great wanderer. That's not accounting for any "other" forces that might course through this realm. He had already embraced one anomalous power; he would be a fool to think that it was the only one out there.
Well, as nice as these thoughts are, they will have to wait
The dull road continued for several more hours, with the soldiers not stopping for food or rest. With every step, his strength slowly drained. Each pace demands more and more.
Eventually, they came across the edge of this forest - or maybe it's more accurate to say an intersection?
Ahead of them was a break in the treeline. Highlighting an intriguing irregularity about the ground.
The earth was split by a jagged, endlessly deep trench, dividing the world into two serrated plates. The land ahead of them was gently moving clockwise, its gigantic teeth grinding against the grooves carved into the ground beneath them.
A shout from the captain broke the settled silence, his walk suddenly snapping into a frantic dash. Cassian didn't have time to wonder what had triggered this reaction; the rope began to strain, and he was jerked forward as the soldiers sprinted after their leader. They hit the border between the plates in a desperate leap.
As they did this, a deafening k-thunk was blasted into the surroundings. Whatever balance had kept the cogs steady evidently snapped, sending the world once again spinning into a chaotic whirlwind. The group he was traveling with sought haven near the ground, taking shelter on the fresh land-like cog.
Interestingly enough, this landmass moved far slower . When Cassian looked back across the trench, the plate they had just exited was a blue of visible motion, the position they stood on spinning into the distance.
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An eternity of walking later, their surroundings changed again. The endless green of the forest was breaking into a sparse scattering of naked trees. Coming into view ahead was an encampment of sorts. Far removed from the hasty setup of the campsite Cassian had so rudely crashed in on yesterday, this was a full-on city. Stripped wooden walls with serrated points surrounded a city of fur-lined tents, forming a wide circle that shielded it from both the elements and potential threats within the ancient woods.
His legs were complaining, an intense stabbing tiredness from the forced march. Much to his pained dismay, no reprieve could be found from the callous soldiers who yanked him by the arms through the gate of the establishment as if determined to display their catch.
The fort was more lavish than Cassian expected. Passing through the serrated wooden gates, he found himself on a central mud highway that had been paved with stable timber beams. Rows of massive military tents lined the path, most of them brimming with soldiers whose drunken shouts echoed through the lining.
Some things never change
Cassian was led down a side path away from the warmth of all the fires- stopping before an open-air cage. A truly miserable sight, its interior lined with 4 rusty metal posts, most of which already "hosted" residents clad in nothing but tattered sacks. He realized quickly that the figures huddled in these shadows weren't human at all.
Soldiers dragged him into this cage, trading his comfortable rope restraints for rusted handcuffs- dragging him to the remaining post. Unceasingly, they snapped him to the cold metal, leaving him alone with the downtrodden prisoners who didn't even raise their heads.
With nothing else to do and no hope of breaking out of the metal restraints, Cassian took a closer analysis of his neighbors.
There was one male figure and two female ones, the male being closest to a human in the image. He was lean- the kind of slim, athletic build that comes from years of moving quickly rather than lifting. His angular, sharp face had sunk in slightly. But the gaze of quiet intensity he emanated bore a hostility so great it dwarfed the surroundings. The main feature that caught Cassian's eye was his ears, which stabbed sharply outwards in a triangular shape
An elf?
Beyond the elf, the older woman sat with distant eyes, her face drawn and bony from hunger. She stared hopelessly at the dirt, the tufted, cat-like ears atop her head flickering rhythmically at every passing sound. A thin, nearly furless tail lay curled in the dust behind her. A limp, depressing coil.
The girl beside her looked small and fragile, her frame twitching against the heavy iron of her arm restraints. Even through the hollowed-out features of starvation, she still looked like a child. Her own ears hung low and sunken, but in sharp contrast to the woman, the girl's tail was a massive, comical plume of fiery fur. It rose behind her like a spotlight, currently squished and matted against the cold metal of the cell.
Not even the shifting land disturbed them. As Cassian lent back into the embrace of the metal pillar behind him, waiting idly whilst the massive cog beneath their feet finished its rotation. This time, the movement was slower- a gentle momentum far removed from the rapid swing of the last turning.
If his guess was correct, the movements seemed to mark dusk and dawn; a guess quickly proven true as light bled from their surroundings, leaving the cell in a pitch-black darkness.
I keep sleeping in the wildest places
Cassian closed his eyes, his pained body practically begging for sleep - completely failing to notice the intense eyes of the young fox-like girl staring into him.