by Ben Alderson
Savi
I’m falling, and the rush of wind, the tingle of magic in the air, is formidable, freeing. I’ve never felt such peace.
But then it ends, and the world comes crashing down.
George jokes about my recklessness, but he has no idea just how reckless I can be. He wants to know my secrets, my desires, what makes me do the things I do when dusk falls like a cold blanket over Hillcrest, but he can never know how monstrous I can be.
The wolf’s body is missing. At least, that’s how powerful George’s magic manipulates the universe around us. Of course, it’s still there, and I can see it. His magic only hides the body from those who shouldn’t see it.
The pungent odor of its rotting corpse is all around me. I nearly vomit the blood I had before embarking on this ride to Truth Town with George. The smell is so bad, I lose track of everything around me. George is speaking, and though I can see his lips moving, I can’t hear his words. I gag, my heightened senses focusing solely on the mistake before us.
The wolf was broken by the fall. Its legs are twisted uncomfortably beneath its frame. Even after death, it remained its true form—the wolf—which tells me we’ve killed a purebred, one that was born, not bitten. The revenge taken for its lost life will be devastating, for its bond to the wolves is through blood.
Its dark hair is matted and chunks of flesh are missing. The predators of the forest have found their way here, picking away at what remains. Apparently, George’s spell only covered our tracks from the supernatural. A slop of bile works its way into my throat, my liquid diet threatening to overtake my control.
A murder of crows echoes around me. I shield my eyes from the sun as I watch them fly away. I stare at the dark, murky depths of Raven Cry Lake. The air is chilled, and the slowly setting sun is hot on my skin. If we want to beat the night, we haven’t much time to dispose of the body.
As I turn on my heel to face George, something catches my eyes. The shrubs around us rustle. George’s heartbeat echoes all around me, and I struggle to focus on what could be hiding in the brush. With a finger to my lips, I silently tell George not to speak, but he isn’t looking at me. His eyes are glued to the rustling shrubs.
I take a step forward as three large wolves emerge from the shadows. Snarling, with drool seeping from their graying snouts, they approach without caution, as if they assume I will yield to the strength they carry in their true forms. With the sun still high in the sky, I know these too are pure wolves. Born with a ferociousness I pray I’ll never experience.
He asks if we’re looking for something, as if we’re stupid enough to admit to any wrongdoing. I don’t miss the fact that he doesn’t answer my questions either. Not that I need him to. My questions were a test to see how much he’d tell us. The man is tall, muscular, with long, dark hair and skin marked by his countless fights. If vampires didn’t heal fast, my skin might tell my stories too.
George is several feet away from me, and before I can dash to his side and get us out of here, I’m cornered by the beasts, while their leader shouts accusations. I’ve decided to ignore him, my sole focus now on the ravage wolves inching closer and closer toward me. I’m pushed up against the lake now, my heels sliding over the edge into the abyss. This is a dangerous part of Raven Cry, and I fear I haven’t the strength to withstand the current before the wolves succumb to their nature.
The wolf George killed managed to land on a small platform of jagged rock and earth that’s not frequented by visitors. With the news of a missing wolf reaching the ears of Hillcrest, I’m not sure how we’ll explain being this far into Bane’s Forest. Admission would cost us our lives.
The waves of Raven Cry Lake splash against my legs as I walk to the very edge of the ledge. I hear George tell me we should leave. I nod, but when I take a step forward to stand by his side, the wolves pounce.
I yell for George to run as I brace myself for their attack. I backhand the wolf to my left, offering only a side-glance as he is flung back into the brush from which he emerged. If he has any sense of survival, he will stay there. As I plant a solid kick center mass to my frontal assailant, the wolf at my right slams into my body. I’m unstable and unable to withstand his assault. I hear the slightest of snaps as my bones break beneath its unwavering strength.
And I’m falling.
My head slams against the jagged rock of the ledge on which we’re perched. I’m dazed and lights dance behind my eyelids. I roll onto my back, ignoring the sharp pain resonating through my leg. It works its way up my spine, and I shriek. Already, I begin to heal. But without resetting my bones, I’m healing as is. Later, George may have to break and reset my leg before I can properly walk away from this mess. But that’s a worry for another time. Right now, I have to focus on fighting while wounded. Already outmatched, I can’t risk being outstrengthed too.
Jaws snap before my eyes, but I reach forward to hold my attacker at bay. Mere inches are between its sharp, yellow teeth and my porcelain skin. I grunt as I put all of my energy into shoving him off me. He budges only slightly, but it’s enough for me to wedge my good leg between us, and I catapult him into the air before kicking him into the lake. The current will keep him busy, and if I’m lucky, he’ll drown.
I spare a quick glance at George, who is surviving his own battle against the deceased wolf’s brother. The moment he emerged from the shadows, I recognized him as the leader of the Hillcrest wolf pack. I’ve heard stories of how powerful he is. In order to become alpha, the wolf is put through trials—the last being a fight to the death against the current alpha. It takes a strong wolf to survive the hell they’re put through. George will need my help if he expects to survive.
I roll onto my side, having no time to consider my options. I grab a handful of rocks, and as I’m charged by the beast I hoped would remain in the bushes, I throw them, grunting as I put as much force as I can behind my arm. They slice through the air, the loose strands of my hair whipping past my ear as I release the stones. Just as the wolf leaps, several of the rocks make impact, ripping through its flesh. The beast falls to the ground, a howl escaping its bleeding chest. Unless one of the rocks penetrates its heart, I didn’t land a kill shot, but I’ll take what I can get.
I hear the final wolf approach before I even process what’s happening. By the time I sense real danger, it’s too late to move. Weaponless, I can do nothing except wait for it to land. It pounces, and I’m smothered in ratted, dirty fur.
At first, I feel it on top of me. I’m smothered in a pungent, filthy blanket. The first time I touched a wolf was at the bonfire. I leapt in front of it to save George, and when I wrapped my arms around its torso, I remember feeling surprised by how soft it was. But this beast is nothing like that one. Its fur is rough, scratchy, and I ache to push it away. It smells like a wet dog or sodden carpet with a thin layer of dust. I gag as I take in a mouthful of swampy fur.
I hear the crunch of bone, and I feel the exact moment teeth sink into my flesh. Quickly, the pain works its way through my body, and a fire erupts within me, scorching every fiber of my being. Within seconds, it manages to find the deepest parts of my soul and burrow there. It’s as if I’ve been set on fire, and all I can do is watch myself burn.
A scream escapes my lungs with such fury, such force, such pure unstoppable pain, everything around me silences. My voice doesn’t sound like my own, and I only know it was real because I’m paralyzed, trapped in a dying body, forced to watch its demise. I yearn to roll into the darkest depths of the nearby lake, where I’m sure this fire must burn out.
I can’t move. I can’t see. I can only feel. I can only scream. And I do. I scream as the agony of the werewolf bite washes over me tenfold until darkness falls upon me.
But even in the dark, the pain remains.
George
Savi disappears toward the edge of the lake, leaving me to deal with the man. His eyes glow, intensifying the golden tones that mark him as a werewolf. As he takes steps toward me, his hands morph int
o claws, his teeth into jagged stairs of points and stains.
Only one can shift and still keep part of his human identity.
The alpha.
The answer rings true as I back up, almost tripping over a fallen branch. Leader of the wolves, master of the shift, sire to many… I killed the brother of the most powerful werewolf in Hillcrest.
And now he wants revenge.
“I’ve never tasted witch, but my ancestors have. In fact, I grew up listening to stories of your delectable blood. How it curdles and gets sweeter the more you drink. Flesh that’s tainted with energy. They said the heart is the best part.” His voice is a deep growl, throaty and threatening. “Since you have killed one of my own, the treaty grants me my vengeance in return.”
My hands press against the cold face of the cliff. In the distance, I hear a chorus of growls from both the wolves and Savi. I can only glance her way for a brief moment. Lowering my guard gives the alpha enough time to flash closer to me.
“I… didn’t do it,” I lie, unable to convince myself. Unseen to the alpha, the body he seeks is so close to my right I can see its lifeless eyes.
“Are you certain?” He squints, tongue lapping across his lips.
“If you hurt us, you will be the one breaking the treaty,” I say. “Is that a risk you are willing to take?”
That stalls him for a moment. He breaks his gaze and looks up toward the top of the cliff. Releasing a sigh, I expect him to call off the wolves and agree. But then his smile returns, flashing every single tooth he has to offer.
“I think I will take the risk. You see, my people told me of one witch and one vampire who intervened at feeding during the full moon. It left me baffled. It is not often I come across two beings who have spent millennia in hatred traveling together. Forgive me, boy, but I am putting two and two together. And do you know what it points to?”
I can’t breathe, let alone conjure a reply.
He lifts a claw and points it at the space between both of my eyes. “You. It points to you.”
I sense his attack before it happens. The ground whispers to me, warning me of his feet which swivel in place. The air screams, urging me to drop. And I do.
The man’s clawed fist connects with the stone wall where my head was only seconds before. I have only a moment before he reaches down, so I throw as much power as I can toward him. The earth shakes violently at his feet, small fissures opening around him. He looks down and jumps with grace away from the opening in the ground. He lands away from me, so I finally have the space to move. Raising my palms, I will the air to listen to my wish. All the shouts of Savi fighting the wolves are drowned out as my magic rushes for the man. Streams of silver rip leaves from trees and dirt from the ground, battering it toward the alpha. He cowers, covering his face with his long arms to protect himself. I scream into my power, fueling it with as much vigor as I can muster.
I hold it for as long as I can before my body sags, exhausted and breathless. So much energy wasted in my attempt to fight.
The alpha looks up at me with burning hate. He is covered in dirt. It stands out against his skin like flecks of night against snow. His knees bend, arms raised to his side, and he flashes his claws threateningly.
He is airborne, flying across the space between us. Flesh turns to fur. His face elongates, snout stretching to life. His body does not get smaller, but it does give way for the true beast to take form. Once his hands, now paws, touch down on the ground, he is no longer a man, but a monster. His wrinkled face snarls, exposing many rows of teeth. His claws cut into the soft ground of the forest, and his fur raises in heckles down the dark sheen of his arched back.
Fire is the only element to stop him, the only element wolves are repulsed by. But even the thought of reaching for it scares me more than the beast that’s preparing its attack. I haven’t a moment to think as he runs toward me.
I lift my arms, calling for the water in the lake to help, but it rises lazily and slow. I throw myself to the ground, muscles screaming and skin aching atop stones.
The wind is driven from my lungs as the heavy paws land on top of me, pinning me down. I look into the open mouth of the wolf, at the dark abyss of its throat. Drool dribbles between teeth and lands on my cheeks and chest. I want to recoil, but the force of the beast is too strong to move.
I feel blood prickle on my shoulder as its claws dig into me. Blood. A rush of darkness spreads throughout my body at the presence of my blood. It starts at the wound and fills my soul and mind. The claws rake down more on my skin, only bringing forth more of my gore and, with it, a new power, one I had kept hidden since Father’s death.
I twist my wrist to make my palms face the belly of the wolf. The spears of dark shadow come to mind, and I will them into reality.
I hear a scream.
Savi.
I wouldn’t have thought too much of it, but the alpha jumps off of me and runs for the dark coverage of the forest as if the very noise startled it.
I’m shocked by his sudden disappearance. My mind still a rush of new power that wants escape, so strong I can’t register what is happening around me. Once the spinning in my mind stills, I roll my head to look and see two other wolves follow after their leader. One’s muzzle is stained red, and the other has a wounded chest. I was certain three wolves came with him, but where is the third?
I stand, body reeling with fresh power. I sense the darkness at the tips of my fingers, begging for escape. Wobbling on my feet, I step forward, past a crest of rocks, and see Savi. She is face down on the ground beside the lake. Behind her, I spot the body of a wolf floating in the water, unmoving. I rush for her, dropping to my knees beside her. She is breathing; I can see the subtle rise and fall of her chest. But her eyes are closed, and her skin is lifeless and dull.
She’s moments from death.
“Savi!” I choke, panic closing my throat.
Rolling her over onto her back, I feel something wet against my hands. Pulling them back, they are covered in blood. Savi’s blood. The material of her top is stuck messily to her shoulder, covered in thick red that weeps from many puncture marks.
“Savi,” I breathe, panic taking over. I rush my hands across her body, searching for more signs of possible injuries. “Open your eyes, Savi! Come on, open them…”
I shake her one good shoulder, but she does nothing to show she can hear me. Pulling the material back from her shoulder, I see the damage. Her veins around the puncture marks are visible and black. Werewolf bites are venomous to most, but deadly for vampires, just like vampire bites are lethal to werewolves. No one has ever survived a bite from both species before. I can see the poison as it works through her body, infecting her, killing her.
I cry, letting loose the tears that fill my eyes. Pressing both hands to her chest, I sense her life fading, her source of energy dwindling like the emptying of a well. My power whispers to me, telling me she hasn’t much time.
A life for a life. That is what the treaty deems acceptable. Is that why the alpha ran off? Did he know Savi would die from this bite? Did he see the wolf floating in the lake? Or did he leave thinking Savi has now paid my debt for me?
You can save her.
My blood sings to me as it dribbles down my own skin from the puncture marks on my shoulders.
You can do it this time. You will not fail.
It is a dangerous game to play. I know that well enough. But if there is even a sliver of a chance that it could work, I can’t give up.
I waste no time in worrying and pondering. If this can save Savi, I have to try. No matter what happens to me in the process.
The blood leaking from my many wounds is not enough to invoke the magic in full. I would need more.
I raise my palm and see the silver mark of my faded scar. Last time I tried this, I couldn’t bring him back. Father. But this time, I will not fail. I want to save Savi, a feeling I lacked when Mother presented me with Father’s dying body. I didn’t want to help him, and my power kn
ew that. But this time, it should sense my desperation to save Savi.
I pick a stone from the floor beside Savi’s body and press the pointed part to my palm. Dragging it across, I call out in agony as it rips open my skin. Red warmth pools in my now fisted palm as I collect the power and ready it.
The darkness is strong. I can almost taste it. I fight a giggle as the new feeling rushes through my mind, making me lightheaded and giddy. A shadow of light spins around my fist, faster and faster. Soul. That is what this is. Spirit. For such dark, forbidden power, it does look beautiful. Bright and strong, it’s magic that goes beyond the other elements’ limitations.
I press both hands together and close my eyes, visualizing Savi alive. Then I press my bloody hands to her, one above her heart and the other above her wound. I can feel my blood snake from me and blend with her own, filling her poisoned veins.
As I close my eyes, all I can sense is the dark, thick, penetrating shadow. I can’t see past the darkness, but I don’t need to. I can feel Savi in the shadows, sense her soul. It’s hurt. It cowers in the corner of her weakening body.
Let me help, my power says to her soul. I can make the pain go away.
It’s too late, she replies.
As if challenged, I release everything I have to prove her wrong. It is never too late…
The blood magic tethers to Savi’s fading soul and pulls it from the shadows. In my mind, I watch as her crimson essence is yanked back into her own body and secured with part of my own soul. It breaks away from me, sending a terrible agony across my body. Like lightning, it slams into me, ripping part of my own consciousness away.
I drown in pain but don’t stop forcing my soul toward Savi. I see it, a sliver of light as it is offered to her. And then I see nothing.
Opening my eyes, I fall back, head connecting with the ground. I’m exhausted. I have no energy to even lift my gaze and check on Savi. I close off the blood magic and sense the natural power recoil from me in fear.