Entro slowly opened his eyes, greeted by the evening sun shining through the leaves of the bush he found refuge in throughout the day.
Agricore, who seemed to have gotten bigger after his fight, had grown much too large to attempt traveling by day, forcing them to rearrange their sleep schedule.
'He's the size of a brown bear, did he eat a runaway mushroom?'
Inwardly sighing at his pup's frightful growth, Entro began planning their next plan of action while waiting for the sun to set.
When night fully blanketed the forest in its dark embrace, Agricore lumbered over to Entro.
After going through all of their potential options, it was clear there was only one that was sustainably viable in the long term.
"Hey buddy, I need your help getting us to safety, can you manage?"
Already understanding his meaning, Agricore rolled into a position that gave Entro easy access to his back.
Climbing up, he could feel the powerful heartbeat between his legs, muscles rippling under his thick coat of midnight fur.
Agricore seemed to get darker by the day.
Starting as a grey wolf, he was now near imperceptible from the night around him, as if a part of it.
"I'll relay the directions to you and sleep on your back through the night, and go on watch during the day; we have a long journey ahead of us."
Using the Aetherian cells to put a map in Agricore's head, Entro laid down.
The pup's back was even more comfortable than a horses'.
With broad shoulders packed with muscle, Agricore was nowhere near as lean as your average wolf.
Not expecting to be tired in the slightest, and mostly looking for comfort, Entro rested his head between Agricore's shoulder blades.
It was but mere moments later that a wave of exhaustion trampled him into an unconscious state.
There were no dreams.
As if being thrust forward in time, Entro's eyes parted to the sight of rock and a barrier of fur surrounding him.
Rising, Entro found the barrier of fur to be Agricore curled around him, taking deep breaths with his eyes shut.
The sun beamed from the mouth of the cave, suggesting a time closer to midday.
'Damn, I overslept.'
He glanced around, the rock was carved out of a faded red, giving Entro an idea of where they were located.
Wanting to be sure, he stepped towards the mouth of the cave and peered out, a vast expanse of grass and rock was before him.
'The Borrego State Park...'
They had traveled over 90 miles in a single night.
But this was great, surveillance in the State park was much more sparse. Lack of trees, long fields of flatland, mountain, and canyon formations; they could travel at night with speed in mind.
At the same pace, they could reasonably travel around 130 miles tonight and be well into the Sonoran desert and crossing the border.
Entro smiled, he could the light at the end of the tunnel, sort of.
His stomach growled.
'Time to eat.'
It was in the middle of eating jerky that he got curious.
'What's the progress with your work on my body'
[We're making ground Father, we've seized control of major arteries, cutting off the immune systems' pathway of resistance. We're building our forces to launch a duel-prong attack on the heart and bone marrow; once successful, production and distribution will be ours, effectively ending this war. The Dreamer remains impartial.]
Entro couldn't help but swallow nervously. They discussed taking over his body as if conquering territory already settled by others.
An understandable sentiment, his immune system wasn't controlled by his subconscious, or Dreamer as they called it. It operated on automatic chemical responses, meaning if they didn't take control, it would continue to attack them and make their job harder.
'What's the plan for after you subdue my immune system?'
He understood why it needed to be pushed back, but he wasn't aware of the plan.
[This mortal form is too weak for your will Father. Our purpose is to carry out your will and sweep all who dare oppose it. Your human body is incredibly complex but weak; we will transform you into a being far above Aether and Human, the King of Aetherians.]
Entro's breath hitched at their words, weren't they discussing turning him into a hybrid?
He sorely wished he could be afraid of the promised change, abhor and reject it, but Entro was excited, he craved it.
'Well what's taking you so long,' he said grinning.
Briefly shocked, the Aether stood there silently before adopting a serious expression.
[Yes Father]
---
The sun had just bathed the last of its light over the sky before the Earth was plunged into darkness; it was time to move.
Agricore rose from the ground.
Once he felt the shadows deepen in the cave, he knew his shift had started.
His paws were still a little sore, and he hadn't slept too deeply, just enough to be able to run again; he couldn't leave his father without supervision.
While only a pup, Agricore was very aware of how incredibly smart his father was, his existence was owed to that. But he could also feel how feeble his father's mortal form was.
When he gripped his fur to hang on, shying away from the chill of the blowing wind, Agricore felt every shiver.
The Dreamer told them the secret to building a consciousness; a secret that not only resulted in the creation of himself, but showed easily it could be snuffed out.
Even a god, like Father.
Stepping out of the cave, he found Father sitting against the mouth, fast asleep.
Leaning in, Agricore used his nose to nuzzle Father, careful not to startle him; eventually, Father opened his eyes.
"I fell asleep? I'm sorry Agri," a yawn cut off his words, "I don't know why I'm so tired."
Agricore lowered to the ground, allowing Father to climb on, before continuing their trek south.
"Here, I'll stay up with you this time, I missed my shift."
The sentiment was appreciated, but he could already feel Father's muscles starting to slack and his heartbeat starting to slow.
It was this very kindness that spoke volumes of his character.
For such a benevolent god to show consideration for mortals was one thing.
To throw that kindness back in said god's face, drive him out of his home, and still covet his gifts, was another matter entirely.
'They will bleed.'
Trotting into the distance, it took minutes for Father to fall fast asleep on his back, gripping Agricore's fur and locking his legs.
Hours blurred between each other, the pain of running finding its way into Agricore's joints.
It was easier this time.
The night before was filled with endless agony, he pushed himself further than he had ever gone before.
This time, however, he had a new limit, one that he intended to reach.
With Father asleep, the Dreamer awoke.
The grip on his fur and back loosened as a dreamy voice spoke in the tone of Father.
{What ails you, child}
'I'm just not used to running this much, I can handle it.'
Agricore didn't flinch, he meant his words.
It was true he was newly born and not used to running, but he was on a mission bigger than himself.
{Not your body child, your mind}
Silence.
'I am fearful.'
{Fearful of what.}
'That I won't be enough to protect Father.'
{We both know there is only one way to deal with uncertainty child}
Agricore didn't respond. Instead, he snorted and ran harder.
He saw the vast expanse of land in front of him, imagining how far his figure would be if he ran faster. Agricore saw himself hundreds of yards off in the distance.
That was where he needed to be, he was moving too slow.
It was that conviction, that desire, and unrelenting will that caused him to fall, not onto the ground; but into the darkness below.
Appearing, far ahead of his original location, Agricore ground to a halt and looked to check on Father, panting. Whatever that was, just took an insane amount of energy to pull off.
His legs were shaking, being held up by nothing but burning will. The ground was shifting from close and far out and his heart pounded in his ears.
{It's about time to take a break, is it not?}
Agricore did not respond.
He looked off in the direction they were headed before taking off into another sprint.
{Good boy}