The maze of tunnels was dark and cold, painfully so. My breath fogged in front of my face, and my hand was cold on the wall. I walked slowly, with the only sound being my footsteps and shaky breathing.

Alpha Rose would be worried about me by now. She would probably send her wolves into the forest to search for me. I knew they wouldn’t find me this deep in the forest, let alone underground. All I could do was keep moving.

“I-it’s really dark down here,” I shuddered. “D-do I have to do this?”

You’re doing well, little one.

I just rolled my eyes, perhaps in an attempt to hide my fear, and continued to walk. I kept my hand on the right wall. There were a lot of random turns, box-like rooms with nothing in them, and rubble of ice and stone along the floor.

What was this place? Some sort of… catacombs, maybe? And why was he making me do this? What made me so special? I was downright terrified of wolves, I hated the forest, and didn’t even know what I actually wanted to do with my life. I was nobody, especially to…. Well, to a god.

You worry too much, darling. You’ll be fine. So far, you’re doing great on this little test. I promise you, you are almost done.

“I’ve literally just been wandering around like a headless chicken,” I softly replied to him, breath forming a cloud. “How can you say that I’ve been doing good? Hell, I don’t even know if you’re real. I might just be going insane.”

You are not going insane. Feel your heart. Is it beating fast? No, it is not, because, at your core, you know that everything will be okay. That is the gift of every creature who is bound to us. I was… doubtful at first, but, the more I watched you, the more I knew. Keep walking, Raine Swann. You’re almost there. Allow the bond to draw you to me.

I held my hand over my pulse, shocked to feel that he was right. It took me a moment, but I soon realized that I wasn’t afraid. Confused, yes, but afraid? Not really. Yeah, it was dark and cold, but I was dressed in enough layers to keep me alive. A small smile formed on my face, and I kept walking, more confident now.

“Look, Mr. God,” I said, “I’ve always been afraid of wo--”

Did you just call me ‘Mr. God’?

“Well, I don’t know your name.”

...It’s… Cloud. My name is Cloud.

“Woah, woah, woah,” I paused for a moment. “Your name is Cloud? Like, a cotton ball made of water and air floating in the sky? That is… probably the weirdest name I’ve ever heard.” Oh, fuck, I just insulted him. Probably not the best idea to insult a god who ruled over the entire town.

Yeah, well, your name is Raine. Like, water droplets from the sky.

“Mm, point taken,” I nodded, continuing down the tunnel, grateful that he didn’t decide to smite me right then and there.

Around the corner, there seemed to be light. I eagerly walked towards it, soon running. I turned the corner and tumbled out into the cold, landing face down and with a mouthful of snow.

“Well, that was graceful,” a gentle laugh came.

I looked up to see a man standing above me. His short but messy light grey hair was mostly pulled out of his face with braids and silver pins. His vibrant blue eyes seemed to glow in the dim light. He didn’t have human ears, but rather a pair of grey canine ears atop his head. His left wolf ear was shredded. The man wore grey leggings under an off-the-shoulder, flowy grey and white dress that fell almost to his knees and was longer in the back. The lace sleeves were long and skin-tight, ends wrapping around his middle fingers with silver rings, and had a grey-to-black ombre. Around his neck, there was a loose lace choker necklace. It was black, with little silver and blue charms and gems all over it. His knee-high black boots had heels on them, and were decorated with silver chains. I could only stare at him.

“Mm, I suppose you must not recognize me in this form,” he crouched beside me, cupping my jaw in his palm. I could only stare, eyes wide with shock. He lightly giggled, trailing his thumb along my jawline. “I’m sorry, are you… drooling? I know you’re homosexual, and people often adore me, not to mention you’re bound to me, but I didn’t realize it would happen this quickly.”

“I-It’s you,” I whispered. “Y-you’re….”

“The God of Ivory Tower, yes,” he nodded with a gentle smile. “Like I said, my name is Cloud. And you, Raine Swann, are my, for lack of a better word, mate.”

“Wait, wait, wait!” I scrambled backwards, arms in front of me. “Mate?! What the fuck does that mean?! You promised to tell me what you want with me once I passed your stupid little test. I got out of the maze, so now tell me! You said you keep your promises.”

He sighed, standing up. “Come now, let’s take a little walk and I will… attempt to explain.” He held out his hand, which I slowly took. He easily pulled me off the ground, then gently wiped the snow off my clothes and hair. He didn’t let go of my hand as he led me through the forest.

I suddenly became aware of the fact that I was actually drooling. I hastily wiped away the saliva with my sleeve, more than embarrassed. The god now leading me through the woods didn’t seem to care. His fingers were warm and soft curled around my hand. His pale skin was practically flawless. A fluffy grey tail swayed against the dress, appearing from a decorated slit in the skirt.

“Aren’t you cold?” I whispered, looking at his bare shoulders.

“No,” Cloud softly replied.

“Are you going to tell me anything?”

“...I want to,” he sighed. “I just don’t know where to begin. You’ve had a rough few weeks, and I want to give you some time to adjust to the fact that magic is real and that I’m a god. But, if you want answers that badly, ask your questions and I will tell to the best of my ability.”

I thought for a moment. “What, exactly, are you the god of?”

He smiled, “I am Cloud, the god of storms and sanctuary.”

“Why did you create Ivory Tower?”

“In the beginning, it was made as a stop for the Underground Railroad. And I’m very serious when I say it’s a literal underground railroad. I mean, like, a real train is literally underground. Well, most of the way.”

“Oh, so, it’s a train stop?”

“...You could say that. There are a lot of hills around here, so the train would exit one tunnel, stop in Ivory Tower, pick up some passengers or cargo, then keep moving until it got to the Childrens’ Village. But that’s a story for another time.”

“Does the train still run through here?”

“Not in this part of the realms. The tracks and tunnels were deemed unstable a few decades ago due to a number of human activities. And then the Hell Royals wolf pack took over. It just wasn’t safe. But that was years ago. Now the Rose Thorns rule this land. But, the tunnels are still unstable and dangerous, so they’re hidden from everyone. Except for me, of course.”

“No one in this town knows about the train?”

“Absolutely no one, and I want to keep it that way.”

“C-can you let go of my hand?”

“Are you going to run? Because, if you are, I’m just going to tackle you in my wolf form. I’m a pretty big wolf.”

“Yes, I noticed,” I nodded, almost chuckling. “I won’t run. I promise. I haven’t gotten this far just to run away again.”

His grip carefully loosened, then he released me. I didn’t run. I stayed a few steps behind him, since he was faster than me in all this snow, but didn’t run. I knew I should have run, but something was telling me not to.

“So, where are we going?” I asked. “Or, are we just walking around?”

“I’m taking you to the old station,” he replied. “You’ll be warm there.”

“Uh, I’ll be warm in Alpha Rose’s house too,” I said. “Plus, all my stuff is there. And they’ll be getting worried about me. The sun is starting to set.” The sky was slowly growing a bit darker.

Cloud let out a long breath. “Very well. Get on my back.” He quickly and effortlessly transformed into his beautiful grey wolf form.

“Uh, I’m pretty heavy,” I slowly said, taking a step back.

I’ve lifted century-old trees before. Get on.

I hesitated, but slowly approached him. I grabbed the warm and soft fur on his neck, careful not to pull too hard, then struggled to get on. Once situated on his back, my feet were a few inches off the ground. Cloud began walking through the forest at a quick pace, but not so fast that it was uncomfortable.

“Th-the bow and arrows,” I whispered. “The archery range. How old are they?”

A few centuries. We made them in… 1448, I believe.

“Wow…,” I breathed. “H-how are they still there?”

Gods can do many things that normal magic users can’t. Spells of preservation are among the most common. Enchantments designed to keep something forever. I thought that would be obvious.

I nodded, slowly coming to terms with what was happening. The God of Ivory Tower was just a watcher. He just watched and waited, waiting for me to come along. I still didn’t know why, but I was somewhat content with the answers I had gotten, even if they were vague and unrelated. Perhaps later I would ask him all about why he chose me and all that.

But, for now, I was just tired and hungry and cold and I desperately wanted to sleep. Hopefully we would be back at Ivory Tower soon. I still couldn’t believe that it used to be a train stop for some literal underground railroad. How could people even do that? Tunnel for miles upon miles upon miles, only for half the rails and tunnels to be decommissioned. It was amazing.

Get off. They’re coming for you.

I blinked, then slipped off his back. When I looked back at him, his blue eyes were sad and his remaining ear was pinned back.

“I-I’ll come back, I promise,” I wearily smiled. “I-I don’t think I’m really afraid of wolves anymore. At least, not as much as before.”

That seemed to cheer him up. Cloud licked my cheek with his rough wolfy tongue, then ran off into the dark forest, leaving me alone in the snow. It wasn’t long until a rather small white and brown wolf bounded out of the bushes. It was followed by a few more wolves, most of them much smaller than Cloud.

“Raine!” It was Cedar! He threw his arms around me, much to my surprise. He then pulled away and shook me. “Where have you been? We’ve been worried sick and searching for you half the day! Are you hurt?” He began inspecting me for wounds.

“I-I’m fine, Cedar,” I took a step back. “Just… got a bit lost.”

“Yeah, these forests can be really confusing,” he nodded. “Well, come on; your skin is ice cold and your lips are nearly blue; you need to warm up.” He beckoned for me to follow. “By the god, how long have you been out here?”

That was a good question. I had lost a lot of time while following Cloud and trying to find my way through that stupid maze. What was even the point of that test? To see if I would get scared? Well, I hadn’t. And now that the adrenaline of meeting a real god was wearing off, exhaustion and hunger were slamming into me.

I tried to keep walking with Cedar as the protective wolves surrounded us, but I was getting more and more tired. I deeply yawned, hugging myself. My stomach growled. I felt tired. I was almost dizzy.

“Almost there, Raine,” Cedar promised.

Soon, we came to a familiar part of the woods. The house came into view. The wolves scattered in different directions. Alpha Rose and Amber were waiting at the door, both visibly concerned. I lowered my head, embarrassed that I had run off like that, especially after all the worrying about the God of Ivory Tower being after me.

“Raine, where did you go?” Alpha Rose asked. “Don’t you ever scare us like that again. By the god, you’re freezing, come inside.” She dragged me inside. “Amber, get some hot chocolate. Cedar, start a fire.” She led me into the living room, making me sit on the couch.

“S-sorry I ran off,” I whispered, shivering. “I just needed some air.”

“Yeah, well, tell me next time,” Alpha Rose forced me to take off my jackets and boots, then wrapped me in a blanket. “There’s a god after you and it’s much colder this time of year. You need to stay here.”

“Why?” I asked. “He probably doesn’t want to hurt me.”

“We don’t know that,” she replied. “Gods can be mischievous.”

Cedar lit a fire. It grew hotter and hotter until I could feel the warmth from where I sat on the couch.

“S-sorry for running off,” I said again.

“Just focus on getting warmed up,” Amber brought me a mug of cocoa. I nodded, stirring the chocolate. They left me alone in the warm living room.

You should run away with me. It would be fun. I could train you in archery, and we could help the children of the Underground Railroad and the Childrens’ Village. That’s where the train leads. I used to teach at the village, but I haven’t been back in a few years now.

“Maybe,” I mumbled, sipping my chocolate.

At least think about it.

“I will. I promise.”