Tales of the Wolf: Book 02 - Enter the Wolf

by A. E. McCullough

“What can I do?”

  “If she is tracking you then Blackfang will be able to find Red Eagle and the Chosen One.”

  “I understand. Their safety is our greatest concern.”

  “Agreed. Hawkeye wants you to join him on the ridge.” The two warlords clasped forearms and Nilrem said, “Farewell my brother. May Luna’s grace smile on you.”

  “Good luck my friend.” Without another word, Odovacar shifted to full boar form and raced up the ridge.

  Seeing Anasazi approaching from the rear of the formation, Nilrem nodded his greetings and shouted to the waiting warriors.

  “By order of Hawkeye the Wolflord, I am now in charge of the defenders and we march now!”

  The warriors glanced at each other for a brief second before they followed orders and headed deeper into the forest with the sounds of battle fading off in the darkness.

  Chapter 30

  Blackfang and Lalith sat in the darkened tent listening to the shadowy form of the magical messenger as it hovered above a small brazier of burning coals.

  “We have separated from the main army. I am unsure where we are going. I can’t even tell you which direction we are heading. Anasazi is leading us. Only he and Tatianna seem to know where we are going. What are my orders?”

  Blackfang studied the hovering shadow bat expecting more but when the messenger fell silent, the barbarian turned to his lover and asked, “Can you locate them?”

  “No.”

  Seeing his confused look, Lalith pointed at the buffalo hide map spread out between them and waved her hands while speaking few words of magic. A red dot and a black dot appeared side-by-side on map.

  “Somehow Anasazi has blocked my tracking spell on the ring. However the tracer spell I placed on Odovacar still has him traveling south with your brother.”

  “Then my informant is mistaken?”

  Lalith shook her head. “No. I believe him. I would guess that Anasazi guessed our plans and found someway to confuse them.”

  Blackfang growled. “Then they have slipped through our grasp?”

  “Not yet. If they have separated and your informant is with Tatianna instead of Hawkeye, then maybe it is time to sacrifice our pawn.”

  “But he has been a useful source of information.”

  Lalith shifted her position just enough so her robe fell open just a bit, offering Blackfang an enticing glimpse her breasts.

  “True but remember what I have taught you about chess. It is not called the game of kings without a reason. Sometimes a ruler must sacrifice a pawn to take a superior piece.”

  Blackfang nodded, both at her words and the view. “True, but he is only one pawn in a camp full of highlanders. What if he fails? We will have lost our informant and gained nothing.”

  “Do not forget that he has my ring.”

  Blackfang cocked his head slightly to one side. “What about it? If he attacks and fails, we will lose our spy.”

  “Not true,” Lalith said with a grin. “The ring he wears is attuned to his heartbeat. If he dies, a swarm of shadow beasts will be summoned forth. Once on this plane, they will kill anything nearby.”

  “So, if he succeeds we still have our informant,” said Blackfang. “If he fails, the shadow beasts should do the job for us. I like it.”

  “I thought you might.”

  With a nod toward the waiting shadow bat Blackfang asked, “Does he know?”

  “No. Why should I spoil my fun?”

  “How do I send a message back to him?”

  Lalith waved her hands and spoke a few words in a language that Blackfang didn’t understand. The shadow bat silently shifted positions and she nodded for him to begin.

  “You now have one mission and one mission alone. Kill Tatianna; if you can accomplish that and not be discovered, outstanding. If not, no matter. Her death is more important than anything else. She must die before the sun sets on the third day.”

  Once Blackfang was finished speaking, the shadow bat disappeared into the darkness.

  “How long before it reaches him?”

  “It’s already there,” Lalith said. “Just waiting for him to retrieve it.”

  “And how will we know if he is successful?”

  “I will know when the spell of binding fails or he will send a messenger with good news; either way it is a win-win situation for us.”

  Reaching over Blackfang pulled the silk robe off Lalith’s petite form. Admiring the view of her naked body the barbarian said, “The Chosen One’s death is all but assured. Let’s celebrate our impending victory.”

  Lalith slid on top of the hulking barbarian and mumbled, “Don’t be over confident.”

  * * * * *

  Forgotten by the two lovers, Lalith’s bodyguard slipped out of the tent unseen and unheard.

  Pausing just outside Darnac glanced back in disgust. Death in battle was one thing but the thought of using demons to kill the unborn child and his mother galled him. Fingering the magical necklace that bound him to Lalith’s service, Darnac once again imagined killing the two lovers while they were in the act. Of course, the dark elf knew that it would be the last thing he would ever accomplish since the necklace he wore would explode the moment Lalith’s life expired. As sweet as that revenge would taste, Darnac’s self-preservation was more important.

  Moving to the outskirts of the encampment, Darnac studied the army of the Dark Alliance.

  The four races had staked out separate areas for their own camp and hardly interacted with each other. Darnac knew that this army was no more an alliance than he was a gnome. This was a dictatorship, pure and simple. Blackfang was in command of the armies due to his ferocity and ruthlessness. The goblins had been the easiest army to sway; they follow the strongest leader, period. Once Blackfang had dispatched the goblin king in a public and very bloody manner, the goblins were his until death. Then, Blackfang had bought off the gnomes with gold and the promise of the dwarven homeland. Of course, the renegade barbarians followed their leader and lastly the dark elves followed Lalith who for the moment paid lip service to Blackfang. Only the Jotens were missing in this farce of an alliance.

  For the first time in years, Darnac felt the loneliness of his servitude. He had made no friends over the last three decades. Although he had only had a short conversation with Grunk; somehow in that brief time he had made a connection with the cyclopean warrior and he found that he missed him.

  Of course, there was Hawkeye. The barbarian warrior had saved his life and hadn’t wanted anything in return. Well, nothing more than the death of Espen, the gnome assassin that had attacked him and that wasn’t really anything special. Espen was dead the moment he failed to kill him, it was just a matter of when, not if. Even so, Darnac couldn’t really call the Highlander a friend but he did like the man.

  Looking up at the heavens, the Blademaster spoke softly to the night sky. “Grunk, where are you?”

  Taking a deep breath, Darnac knew he had to act. The trouble was how. How could he aid Hawkeye and stay alive?

  * * * * *

  The night air was cold on the exposed skin of Tatianna’s face.

  It wasn’t the bitter cold of winter but the crisp clear cold of spring as the elf looked around the campsite where the refugees had fallen asleep when they had finally stopped their march. Only a few of the hardiest highlanders were moving about the villagers. Tatianna could tell most were veterans of numerous campaigns from their mannerisms and priorities. These veterans were the ones who always seemed to make sure the fires were lit and the elderly warm before seeing to their own needs; even now, there were still four or five of them moving among the villagers.

  Tatianna was tired but for some reason sleep was allusive. It had been three days since she had last seen her husband and even though Anasazi assured her that he was still alive, she couldn’t shake the feeling of dread that weighed on her soul this night.

  Amani was snuggled up next to her and shifted slightly in her sleep. Tatianna gazed down at the young hig
hlander and smiled. Amani had nearly become her adopted daughter over these past months. And Tatianna found that she didn’t mind. She knew that Amani’s mother had disappeared during one of the earliest raids of the war. Bravefoot had taken the remnants of his pack and moved them to Itasca for safety. The last few years had been hard on the young lady and if she needed her to be a mother figure, then it was a role she accepted.

  Rubbing her swollen belly, Tatianna knew that it wouldn’t be long before she assumed that role permanently. Movement out of the corner of her eyes caught her attention.

  Turning to see what it was, Tatianna saw Amani’s father standing at the edge of camp, Bravefoot was trying to get her attention without alerting anyone. Looking around conspiratorially, the highland warrior signaled for her to be quiet and to join him. Thinking it was a bit odd; Tatianna disengaged herself from Amani very slowly and moved to join the warrior.

  Due to her advanced condition, Tatianna couldn’t move with her normal grace and found herself shuffling instead of walking. She longed for her old body back, she was used to being light-footed and carefree, not this waddling cow she had become.

  Reaching the warrior, Tatianna raised an eyebrow in silent question. Bravefoot signaled for silence and nodded his head further out of the campsite. When she stopped and cocked her head to the side in silent confusion, the highlander leaned in and whispered.

  “I have a message for you.”

  Tatianna’s heart leapt at the thought of a message from Hawkeye. She wanted to demand to hear it now but the highlander had already moved off. Having nothing to gain by waiting, she followed slowly. After a few hundred yards, Tatianna found Bravefoot standing at the bluff looking off into the distance.

  Moving up behind him she asked, “Okay. We’re alone. What is this message?”

  Bravefoot asked, “Did anyone see you leave camp?”

  Tatianna shook her head. “I doubt it. Almost everyone is asleep. Now, about this message.”

  Bravefoot nodded, reached into a belt pouch and pulled out a small roll of parchment. “This came for you earlier.”

  Again Tatianna felt her heart flutter as she asked, “Is it from Hawkeye?”

  Bravefoot handed it to her. “Here, read it.”

  Taking the scroll, she glanced at the waxed seal but didn’t recognize the emblem of two-crossed sabers in front of a flame. Breaking the seal, Tatianna unrolled the scroll. Written in flowing elven script was the following message:

  Tatianna,

  ‘Beware of the one who gives you this message. He is an assassin working for Blackfang. His ring is the key to the shadows

  A Friend.’

  Tatianna nearly dropped the scroll as she looked into the dark eyes of Bravefoot and saw only death. Trying to buy herself some time she asked, “How…how did this arrive?”

  “By special messenger; I thought it strange but it helped me in getting you alone.”

  Tatianna would never unravel which came first; her water breaking which signaled the beginning of her labor or the lightning fast strike of Bravefoot which pierced her shoulder and caused her water to break. Whichever it was, all Tatianna knew was pain. Her whole world became pain. Backpedaling away from her attacker, she tried to focus enough to cast a spell but a wave of pain rolled up from her belly and instead of speaking the words of her spell, Tatianna screamed.

  Bravefoot laughed and slowly advanced. “The great mother of prophecy brought low by the very child that is supposed to save the world…how poetic.”

  Tatianna tried to draw her sword but the knife was still wedged in her shoulder and any movement of her arm only caused it to throb even more. Tatianna fell to the ground as another contraction wracked her body.

  Through clenched teeth she asked, “Why? Why would you do this to your own people?”

  Drawing his sword, Bravefoot paused in his advance.

  “Blackfang has promised to reunite me with my wife. Your death will signal the end of the war and the beginning of his reign.”

  Tatianna watched as the highland warrior raised his sword in preparation for the final blow and she knew that she was helpless to prevent it. Another wave of pain wracked her body as she silently prayed to Aurora for help as she waited for the deathblow to land. What stopped his swing was the last thing that either of them ever expected.

  “Daddy?”

  Looking up, Bravefoot locked eyes with his daughter and froze in mid-swing. As Amani had grown older, she began to look more and more like her mother. The look of bewilderment she gave him now as she stood at the edge of the trees was one the young warrior had seen on the face of his late wife many times and it caused his heart to ache.

  “Amani, this isn’t what it seems.”

  Taking in the area with a glance, Amani moved closer but stopped several feet away from him and said in a surprisingly calm voice, “I don’t know. It looks like you are trying to kill Red Eagle.”

  Tatianna looked up at her young apprentice and tried to say something but another contraction rolled through her body and all she could manage was a grunt of pain.

  Bravefoot could hear calls of alarm in the distance and knew that his time was running out. Looking back at his daughter he pleaded, “Amani please, I must do this.”

  Amani stood her ground and shook her head. “No father, you have a choice. Let Red Eagle live and come tell Anasazi what you know.”

  “Anasazi is a fool,” hissed Bravefoot. “It’s because of him that your mother is gone but Blackfang serves Clotho and she has promised to reunite us. Has the great Anasazi done that? No!”

  Amani glanced at the cliff edge ten feet away. She too could hear the approaching warriors but she didn’t know if she could stall her father much longer. One thing for certain, Amani knew that she shouldn’t mention the ancient shaman again. Amani took a step to her left which caused her father to also move left keeping the injured elf between them but which moved him a bit closer to the ledge.

  “Dad, this is wrong. No matter what Blackfang has told you, this is wrong and goes against the teachings of Luna.”

  Bravefoot shook his head. “I doubt you will ever understand but what I do, I do for the betterment of all Highlanders.”

  Raising his sword, Bravefoot once again began the deathblow.

  Through tears of regret, Amani whispered. “As do I…as do I.” And let loose the magic missile spell that was roaring around in her head.

  Three golden-red balls flew out from her outstretched hand to land center-mass on her father, catapulting him backwards and over the cliff. Amani rushed forward and peeked over the ledge just in time to watch her father land with a sickening thud.

  “I’m sorry father,” she said quietly and turned away.

  Even through the pain, Tatianna’s sharp elven ears heard something unnatural coming from the depths below. Forcing herself to concentrate past the pain Tatianna said, “Amani. Look below and describe what you see.”

  Keeping her back to the ledge, Amani shook her head. “My father’s body is down there. I don’t ever want to see it again.”

  Tatianna clenched her teeth with another contraction. “It’s important.”

  Amani wiped away the tears and looked back down the cliff. Expecting to see her father’s body in the moonlight, she was greeted with a swirling mass of shadows instead.

  “I…I don’t know how to describe it.”

  Tatianna pushed herself to her knees. “Shadows? Twisting and turning without form?”

  “Yes,” Amani said as she looked back at her teacher. “How did you know?”

  “Quick! Help me up! We need to get back to camp and to get the warriors ready. We are under attack or will be soon.”

  Hesitating long enough to take one last peek over the ledge, Amani saw that the shadows were beginning to expand and take on a more sinister appearance, like that of huge black scorpions. That one glance was enough to convince Amani that her mentor was right and that they would soon be under attack.

  Rushing back, sh
e helped Tatianna stand and the two ladies made their way back to camp calling for help the whole way.

  Chapter 31

  Hawkeye walked at the vanguard of the army and wondered what the next few days held in store for them. They had fought numerous skirmishes with the armies of the Dark Alliance in their flight south but none were decisive or damaging to either army. As the Dark Alliance would attack, the Highlanders would give ground and melt into the forests. Whenever the Alliance held their formation or camped for the night, the Highlanders would attack. It had become a grand game of cat and mouse. Since the chasing armies were much larger than the fleeing highlanders, they were slower to react to the fluid attacks of the barbarians but it also meant they could lose more men and still be an effective army. The Highlanders didn’t have that luxury. At dusk on the third day since the army and the villagers had separated, one of the scouts brought Hawkeye the bad news.

  “Are you sure?” was all the Wolflord asked.

  The scout nodded. “Yes, a large army of hobgoblins have come up from the Wall and are moving north.”

  Pulling out a deerskin map, Hawkeye laid it on the ground and pointed to a line of small hills east of the main entrance to Darkmoor. “We are about here.” Placing two small pebbles slightly north-east and north-west of them he added, “And the armies chasing us are about here and here, correct?”

  The scout studied the map and compared it to the mental image of the landscape he saw while in raven form. He shifted the north-western mark a bit closer.

  “This group has made a lot of progress over the last day. They have ignored all attempts by our warriors to turn them aside, taking whatever punishment we inflict only to continue moving southwest at great speed. It’s as if…”

  Hawkeye finished the scout’s sentence. “They don’t want us joining up with the dwarves.”

  The scout nodded. “Yes sir. That would be my guess. Although we have not seen any activity from the dwarven gates, it would be logical that they don’t want us to join up.”

  Hawkeye slapped the young scout on the shoulder. “Good job. Now, do me a favor and find Sir Richard for me, then get some rest. I suspect we will be in for a long night.”